Robin Lail
We are now living in a golden age for Napa Valley wine. It feels so powerful that it’s hard to believe how recently the region began its ascent—in the 1930s, just after the Repeal of Prohibition. In fact, this extraordinary era can be traced in a single life span, through the remarkable story of Robin Lail, the subject of our cover story in this issue. Lail is the daughter of John Daniel Jr., who as the owner of Inglenook made some of Napa’s best wines in the 1930s and onward through his sale of the estate in the mid-1960s. Robert Mondavi hired Lail in the 1970s, and she later worked for Bill Harlan, helping him transform Meadowood Estate into a gathering place for Napa Valley vintners. Now she is running her own…