oseph Family Vineyards is a partnership of two families. Jon Joseph, president, is a former Wall Street executive with financial market experience in New York, Tokyo and San Francisco. Bill Esselstein, general manager, spent over 40 years practicing public agency law in Menlo Park, CA.
Bill is on the board of the Alexander Valley Winegrowers association, while JFV is also a member of the Sonoma County Grape Growers association, the Family Winemakers of California and Alexander Valley Outlaws - a group of small, family-owned artisan wineries in Alexander Valley.
n May 2008, David Ramey, of Ramey Wine Cellars, joined Joseph Family Vineyards as consulting winemaker. David is one of the most respected wine makers in the country, and we look forward to working closely with him to produce the best possible wine from our estate vineyards. David is known for his "low-input winemaking." In his red wines, this means lower levels of sulfur dioxide, no additions of tartaric acid, use of native yeasts, and minimal or no filtering.

In nearly 30 years of controlled experimentation, David has found that minimal handling methods produce a wine that is "fresher, more vibrant and vital, with a fuller richer 'mouth-feel' and greater complexity." In short, a wine that has great harmony and balance. David has learned his craft on at least two continents, working at Chateau Petrus in France, and Dominus, Rudd, Chalk Hill and Matanzas Creek in California. In 1996, he founded Ramey Wine Cellars with his wife Carla, and lives in Healdsburg with his family.