Mike Anderson
Mike Anderson was born and raised in the Napa wine industry. In 1982 his parents and grandparents purchased the property that would become Anderson’s Conn Valley Vineyards just a few miles outside St. Helena. Mike’s grandfather, Gus, would be the first winemaker in the family who would be followed by his son Todd in 2001 after his grandfather’s retirement. In the late 90s and into the 2000s other family projects, Trespass Vineyards, Ghost Horse Vineyards and Eagles Trace, all also took root. It was common for Mike’s chores to include plenty of vineyard and cellar work for the family businesses.
After college in 2008 Mike started working in wine tasting rooms and cellars once again in between school years. By 2009 he had moved home and started to further his career in the wine industry. With the 2010 harvest looming he realized that while he had been a part of every facet of the wine industry he had not made a wine from start to finish unsupervised. Late into the harvest season he found one ton of Merlot to begin a small home-winemaking project. 16 months later, as the aging process carried on, he began dishing out samples to friends and family for thoughts and critiques. Surprisingly enough the wine was met with some very positive reactions. At that point he began hatching a plan that would turn into MTGA Wines.
Over the last 10 years Mike, along with his wife Brittany, have grown MTGA Wines to produce just under 1,000 cases total with Merlot as their flagship wine. Also included in the lineup today are small-batch Riesling, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon.