Jen Walsh grew up in Maryland and worked in her family’s restaurant during high school and college. As a result, she developed a strong interest in wine long before considering it as a career. Before moving west to receive her master’s degree in viticulture and enology from UC Davis, she worked at Elk Run, a small estate winery in Maryland. Elk Run was a true family operation where she had the opportunity to work in the vineyard in the mornings and in the winery in the afternoons. While there, Jen learned how much hard work and dedication it takes to bring grapes from vine to bottle.

Before joining the La Crema team in 2017, Jen worked at numerous wineries around the globe. Most recently, she was associate winemaker at Benovia Winery in the Russian River Valley, where she worked with myriad heritage Pinot noir clones from different terroirs to craft distinctive single vineyard wines. Her passion has always led her to wineries that focus on expressive, cool-climate Pinot noir and Chardonnay.