Photo by Clara Rice

Kristie Tacey, winemaker and founder of Tessier Winery, is a scientist turned winemaker. A former published research scientist who studied protein pathways, she moved to the San Francisco Bay Area from her native Michigan to pursue a career in biotechnology, which included working on the Human Genome Project. Kristie eventually came to realize that winemaking was her true calling and after working as operations manager and assistant winemaker at an award-winning East Bay winery, she started Tessier in 2009.

Tessier is the result of Kristie’s passion for the art and science of winemaking. She began handcrafting small lots of Pinot Noir and now 15 years later Tessier has over a dozen varietals in the catalog. Kristie’s appreciation of French wines — especially those from Burgundy and the Loire and Rhone valleys — has shaped her winemaking choices. 

With a background in microbiology, Kristie is fascinated by the cycle of life; each vintage of Tessier wines captures and reflects one year in the lives of the vineyards she works with. She sources high-quality fruit from a strong network of farmers in the Anderson Valley, Santa Cruz Mountains, Arroyo Seco, San Benito, Lodi and El Dorado. She uses minimal-interventionist winemaking techniques to showcase the unique characteristics of the grapes and the vineyards. For Kristie, sustainability is a priority — not only with the vineyards’ farming practices, but also by having long-term relationships with her growers and customers. These small production wines, an annual production of 1400 cases, get unparalleled attention.

You can find Tessier in a growing number of restaurants and shops throughout California, Oregon, Hawaii, Arizona, Texas, Minnesota, Illinois, Vermont, New York, DC, Virginia and Florida. Tessier Research Club is our wine club that features all of our wines, including some that are only available in the tasting room, in Berkeley. You receive three shipments of 6 bottles annually.