Megan Cline, the daughter of Fred and Nancy Cline, owners of Cline Cellars, grew up in a large Italian family in Sonoma County. She was one of seven children, so there was constant chaos in the household, but it was chaos in a good way. She roamed the vineyards with her dad, while he quizzed each of the kids about grape varieties and their unique qualities. When it came time to attend college, she went south, to be near a warm beach, and attended UC Santa Barbara to study Italian and Marketing. She didn’t plan to work in the wine industry. Here’s her story.
Your father and mother, Fred and Nancy Cline, started Cline Family Cellars in 1982; in 1989 they moved the winery from Oakley to Sonoma County, and you were born shortly thereafter. As one of seven children in a large Italian family, what was your childhood like? Were vineyards part of your playground? Now that you and your siblings are all adults, are you all involved in the wine industry or is there a renegade or two or three?
Our childhood was pure chaos but in the most wonderful way. Imagine the constant energy, activities, fun, and noise that comes with seven kids born within a decade! Our lives were (and are) deeply intertwined with the vineyards and the land. Our early childhood was spent at the estate vineyard in Carneros, we would often interact with the visitors, trying to sell Girl Scout cookies in front of the tasting room, and our parents often took us for walks in the vineyards, quizzing us on different grape varieties, trying to see how many we could name in a row. Later, we moved to the Catapult Ranch vineyard in Petaluma Gap, a special experience that now feels full circle as we work with those very vineyards for our Gust project.
Four of the seven siblings are actively involved in the winery, which is very rewarding—getting to work alongside each other every day. We each bring our individual backgrounds and expertise to the table, which is essential in a family business where everyone does a bit of everything. Hilary and I co-founded Gust in 2017, and it has been a primary focus for us. We’re often on the road, promoting both Cline and Gust wines. Hilary has worked in nearly every department at Cline —sales, vineyards, operations, DTC, and marketing—and now leads as our VP of Marketing and Hospitality. Mayme has recently rejoined the business and works in our accounts payable department, her husband works in the cellar, and our youngest brother, Henry, oversees all our Sonoma vineyards as our vineyard manager. I focus mainly on our trade marketing and sales.
The three siblings not involved in the family business have pursued different fields. Elsie runs a cattle ranch with her husband in Red Bluff, Emma is a published author with two novels and a collection of short stories to her name, and Ramsey, formerly an aerospace engineer, now owns a casino in Tonopah, a small mining town in Nevada. We all remain incredibly close and supportive of each other, and it has been wonderful to get to work alongside them and see each other’s journey!
Photography has always been one of your crafts and your ability to tell stories through photos is amazing. We’ve enjoyed being able to use many of your photographs to convey the story behind the Petaluma Gap American Viticultural Area (AVA). Do you have a favorite photograph that represents the Gap? Can you share it, and also tell us when and where it was taken and why it’s special for you?
Wow, thank you so much. I love photography and it has been such an amazing creative outlet for me and I’m so glad that you’ve been able to utilize some of the images. Being able to tell the story of the Petaluma Gap through images has been special, especially being so connected to the area. I have a couple of favorite images of the Gap that are all from our Catapult Vineyard, they often show fog which just really helps demonstrate one of the defining characters of the AVA, and you have to have a dog picture too! But I find the region so magical, and love capturing the different seasons and watching how it transforms.
You attended UC Santa Barbara for college; what made you choose to head south? Was it the lure of any special curriculum or to head to the coast or to follow in someone’s footsteps?
To be honest, I just wanted to be by the beach! I studied Italian and Marketing/communications while I was there with absolutely ZERO intention of going into wine and didn’t have an idea of exactly what I wanted to do. It wasn’t until I got the job at Conway tasting room that I took an interest in wine. I think growing up in such a large family you also want to go off and do your own thing, figure out what life will be like for yourself. I loved Santa Barbara and lived there for a couple of years after graduating before I came back to Sonoma, and still love to visit.
Just before graduating, you took a tasting room job at Conway Family Wines. Was that a planned first step in a destined career in wine or was it simply an easy job to step into since you grew up in the world of winery hospitality? After graduation from UCSB, you studied for and became a certified Sommelier. What motivated you to do that?
That was definitely not planned as a career move. I just needed an after-school job at the time. Sure, I knew a bit about wine, but my time there got me hooked. Some of my coworkers were studying for their intro sommelier exams. Hearing them talk about bizarre traditional Greek dishes paired with local indigenous wines, or blind tasting each other— just made wine click for me. Wine combined everything I loved: history, food, culture, people, farming and drinking. And wine is really the perfect lens to learn about all those things. After going for the intro test, I decided to go for my certification. I wanted to learn all about the stories, the landscapes, the people… I thought about going for the advanced level, but I ended up craving some hands-on experience and had less of a desire to pursue the service portion, so I headed back to Sonoma for what I thought would be just one harvest season working with Tom. And I never moved back! There’s just something about the tangible results of a harvest that resonated with me.
During college, you also spent time working in restaurants, including The Natural Café in Santa Barbara. Were you cooking for these restaurants or buying wine or managing their operations?
I was an assistant manager at The Natural Café for about a year while I was in college. It was mostly front-of-house stuff. But that job is where I fell in love with the hospitality industry. There’s just something about the camaraderie you find working in restaurants—you meet the best people, and there’s this unique energy that’s hard to find anywhere else. That experience made me realize hospitality was something I wanted to be a part of my career, no matter what.
A few years ago, you landed a choice assignment with Giant’s Enterprises (as in the Oracle Park Stadium and the San Francisco Giants franchise). You played a role in Marketing and Communications. Did you get to hang out with famous ballplayers or participate in the America’s Cup or any other prestigious events that happened at Oracle Park while you worked there?
Working at Oracle Park with Giant’s Enterprises was a total shift from the wine world, but absolutely fun and exciting in its own way. I got to help with some incredible events at the ballpark. It was a venue for concerts, races, private events, Opera, dinners, you name it. We had Lady Gaga, Def Leppard, Mötley Crüe, Poison, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers during DreamForce. We also turned the field into a soccer pitch for the Champion’s Tour, and I got to help organize the Giant Race and even briefly assisted with converting the field into a golf course. It was so much fun being part of those big moments. But as much as I loved the excitement, I missed the wine world. I’m super glad to be back.
In 2017 you and your sister, Hilary, now back in Sonoma, launched Gust Wines. What precipitated the return to your family home and the launch of a new brand? Why did you choose to focus on the Petaluma Gap vineyards as the fruit source, and how did you choose the name (which we love)? Who designed your label?
Hilary and I have always had a special connection to the Petaluma Gap. And for a long time, the fruit from our vineyards was either sold or blended into larger lots for Cline. We saw an opportunity to create a wine that was truly reflective of our tastes and the distinctiveness of the place where we grew up. Cline at the time had long been known for Zinfandel and we wanted to make the wines that we grew up around and that we loved to drink, small- lot Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Syrah.
We launched Gust Wines in 2017 because we wanted to showcase the Petaluma Gap region and naming the brand ‘Gust’ seemed perfect; it’s a nod to that defining wind, a way to show the essence of the appellation in a single word.
As for the label, we wanted something that captured both the simplicity and the textured complexity of the Gap. We worked with Sydney Sharek, a fantastic designer who was with us in-house at the time at Cline. She did a phenomenal job translating our vision into the visual language of the label.
Your favorite wine is rumored to be Syrah. Is that true? What is it about that variety that captures your heart? Do you have a favorite recipe to pair with it? There’s also a rumor that potatoes are one of your favorite foods. Are they a match for Syrah? If so, we’d love the recipe!
Oh wow, this rumor mill is spot on! Yes, I do love Syrah. There’s something about the Northern Rhône Syrah’s that struck a chord with me. Northern Rhone was one of the first wines I ever nailed in a blind tasting, too. Syrah in general is incredibly expressive. I love the cool climate versions– they usually with tons of pepper and savory notes but layered with that beautiful floral element —it’s why they’ve been such a big inspiration for our own Gust Syrah.
And about potatoes, you got me there too—they’re my favorite food. I mean, is there even a bad way to prepare potatoes? Whether it’s fries, chips, scalloped, latkes, gnocchi, baked, hash browns, mashed, or potato salad, I love them all (sorry to get all Forrest Gump on you!). Though, I admit, they’re not the first thing I’d pair with Syrah. Maybe something like hearty bacon-loaded baked potato or short-rib gnocchi could work. I’ll need to experiment a bit and get back to you on that!
As a member of Gen Y (born 1980 – late 1990’s), we understand that your generation embraces wine, but with quality over quantity as your beacon. When you hang out with your peers, what do they drink? Do you think Gen Z will eventually embrace wine?
My generation leans towards quality over quantity when it comes to wine. When I’m hanging out with my friends, there’s a diverse range of tastes, but the common thread is a preference for wines that tell a story or offer something unique—whether it’s a small-batch natural wine, a well-crafted classic from a notable region, or unique blends. I think we appreciate wines that not only taste good but also have a narrative about sustainability or come from vineyards that practice ethical farming.
As for Gen Z, I do think they will eventually embrace wine. As they age into the wine-drinking demographic, I believe they’ll be drawn to wines that are not only enjoyable but also align with their values like environmental responsibility and social ethics. It’s an exciting prospect because it pushes the entire industry towards more thoughtful production and engagement.
Dogs seem to play a prominent role in your life. Tell us about the dogs that roam the vineyards with you.
Dogs are a big part of my life! Especially my dog Willa— I adopted her in 2017 when she was just a year and a half old, and she’s the best dog in the world. You might have spotted her in some of my photos. Willa grew up roaming Catapult Vineyard with me, whether I’m sampling grapes or just going for a walk. She’s chased her fair share of rabbits, squirrels, and voles through those vines, so I think it’s as special a place for her as it is for me.
We recently asked you if one could truly “taste the wind in wine,” to which you replied “absolutely.” Can you help our readers understand what wind tastes like in wine?
Absolutely. The wind is a defining factor in the character of wines from the Petaluma Gap. It’s not so much about tasting the wind itself but experiencing how it influences the texture of the wine. The winds lead grapes to develop thicker skins, and the clusters and berries are generally smaller in size. This results in a higher skin-to-juice ratio when the grapes are pressed. That means more texture, more structure, and a more pronounced presence of tannins and phenolic compounds which contribute to the wine’s mouthfeel and complexity. So, in this way, when you taste Petaluma Gap wine, you’re experiencing the wind. The wind is integral to the identity of the wines from this area.
