Alan Baker
In 2005, Alan Baker quit his award-winning career in public radio, sold his home, loaded everything into a truck and moved from Minnesota to California. It was a well-developed passion for wine, the wine industry, its visionaries and that seemingly magical process of transforming grapes into great wine that led to this radical life change.
Upon arriving in Northern California, Alan immediately sought work in the wine industry. Taking positions at Unti Vineyards and Peterson Winery he immersed himself in all aspects of the trade, from vineyard and cellar work to sales and service.
Alan’s next stop in his wine education took him to the start-up urban winery, Crushpad, in San Francisco where he launch his first commercial brand Cellar Rat Cellars. It was there that he met Serena Lourie, who shared an equal interest to his in creating a life around wine.
In 2009 Alan, along with Serena, left Crushpad, moved to Healdsburg in the heart of the Sonoma County wine country and set about founding Cartograph. Today, Alan spends his days in the vineyards and in the cellar, overseeing that magical process of turning grapes into wine.
