Robin Baggett of Alpha Omega Winery Elected 2025-26 Wine Institute Board Chairman
Originally published by Wine Institute, June 12, 2025.
We are deeply honored to share that Robin Baggett, co-founder and vintner of Alpha Omega Winery, has been elected Chairman of the Wine Institute Board of Directors for the 2025-26 fiscal year. The announcement was made at Wine Institute’s 91st Annual Membership and Board of Directors Meeting, held June 8-10, 2025, in St. Helena. It is a recognition that reflects not only Robin’s personal leadership, but also the values he and Michelle have built into every aspect of Alpha Omega since founding the winery in 2006.
A Voice for California’s Wine Community
Wine Institute is the preeminent public policy and trade advocacy organization for California wineries. Its work shapes the legislative and regulatory environment in which every California vintner operates. For Robin, this role is a natural extension of a career defined by community, craft, and purpose.
“I am eager to capitalize on Wine Institute’s long history of success and continue its dedicated efforts to safeguard and promote California’s wine community,” said Baggett. “At Alpha Omega we have thrived as a result of decades of Wine Institute’s work. I look forward to working with the team to help California’s vintners succeed in an evolving landscape of policy challenges and emerging wine consumers.”
Wine Institute President and CEO Robert P. Koch offered this in response: “Robin’s passion and business and legal acumen will provide exceptional stewardship as we launch new initiatives to support Wine Institute’s industry leading advocacy work. Robin and our entire leadership team are committed to ensuring wine’s heritage, community roots, increasing sustainability and economic strength are all part of our message and advocacy.”
Those words carry real weight. Robin brings a rare combination of credentials to this role. He is a rancher, a viticulturist, a vintner, and a licensed attorney with a juris doctorate from UC Hastings College of the Law. He served eight years as general counsel for the NBA’s Golden State Warriors. Beyond that, he has spent more than two decades building two wineries from the ground up.
A Career Rooted in the Vine
Robin’s journey in wine began in 1998, well before the first barrel was ever filled at Alpha Omega. Born and raised in Salinas, he attended Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo on a baseball scholarship. He went on to plant more than 750 acres of wine grapes and establish Tolosa Winery in San Luis Obispo. Then, in 2005, Robin and Michelle turned their attention to Napa Valley. They founded Alpha Omega Winery in Rutherford in 2006, choosing the Rutherford Bench for its legendary terroir and its place at the heart of Napa Valley’s winemaking tradition.
Nearly two decades later, Alpha Omega stands as one of the Napa Valley’s most respected boutique producers. The estate at 1155 Mee Lane sources fruit from some of the valley’s most celebrated vineyard sites, from Beckstoffer To Kalon in Oakville to Beckstoffer Georges III in Rutherford, from the high-elevation volcanic soils of Atlas Peak to the rugged ridges of Mount Veeder and Spring Mountain. To learn more about the people and the philosophy behind the wines, visit the Alpha Omega founding story.
Leadership in the Napa Valley and Beyond
This board chairmanship is the latest in a long line of leadership roles Robin has embraced across California’s wine community. Earlier in 2025, Robin and Michelle served as Honorary Chairs of Auction Napa Valley, helping to raise $6.5 million for the Napa Valley Vintners Youth Wellness Initiative. That effort reflects the same spirit that guides everything they do at Alpha Omega. For Robin and Michelle, giving back is not a program or a campaign. It is simply who they are. Learn more about Alpha Omega’s commitment to the Napa Valley community.
Similarly, Robin’s stewardship extends to the land itself. Alpha Omega holds Napa Green certification for both its land and winery operations. The estate operates almost entirely on solar power and farms with a deep sense of environmental responsibility. In Robin’s view, leading California’s wine industry means protecting the landscapes that make California wine worth fighting for. Explore our sustainable farming practices and the principles that guide them.
What This Means for Alpha Omega
Robin’s election to Wine Institute Chairman does not change what happens in the cellar at Alpha Omega. Head Winemaker Melissa Paris and Consulting Winemaker Andy Erickson continue to craft terroir-driven Bordeaux-style wines that express the full range of Napa Valley’s diverse sub-appellations. The vines still get farmed by hand. The fruit still gets sorted with care. The wines still find their way to the people we consider family.
However, it does affirm something we already knew. The same values that shape a great bottle of wine, integrity, a long view, a deep respect for the land and the community around it, are precisely the values the broader California wine industry needs in its leadership. Furthermore, it signals that boutique, family-owned wineries like Alpha Omega have an important voice in shaping the future of California wine policy and culture.
We are proud of Robin. We are grateful for Michelle’s partnership in everything they have built together. And we are excited about what this next chapter holds, for California wine, and for everyone who is part of the Alpha Omega family.
Experience Alpha Omega
The estate at 1155 Mee Lane in Rutherford welcomes guests for wine tasting against the backdrop of the Mayacamas Mountains, tranquil ponds, and landmark fountains. Walk-ins are welcome when availability allows. Well-behaved, leashed dogs are welcome too. Reserve a tasting at Alpha Omega and taste what nearly two decades of dedication to Napa Valley terroir looks like in the glass.
