Our Team
|
|
Managing Member
|
One of the founding partners of Rack & Riddle Custom Wine Services, Bruce has spent most of his career associated with natural resources and agricultural based industries. For the last 14 years he has been active in the wine industry—first as the General Manager at J Vineyards, then as a partner at Longboard Vineyards and, most recently, founding Rack & Riddle with Rebecca Faust in 2007. Prior to his foray into wine, Bruce was Controller and Treasurer at Tillamook Cheese in Oregon before moving to Petaluma, California and serving as CFO at California Gold Dairy Products.
Bruce is a board member of Family Winemaker of California. He graduated from Linfield College in 1978 with a BA in Accounting & Business, and earned his MBA from the University of Portland in 1982. He resides in Petaluma, California with his wife, Denise, and their six children.
|
|
|
Managing Member
|
One of the two managing members of Rack & Riddle Custom Wine Services, Rebecca has spent the last 17 years in the wine business—first working for the prestigious domestic sparkling wine brand Piper Sonoma as Financial Controller, then as CFO at Lambert Bridge Winery. Smitten by the entrepreneur urge, she answered the call in 2007 to co-found Rack & Riddle, along with Bruce Lundquist.
Rebecca first discovered her passion for wine while working for Deloitte Touche following her graduation from Sonoma State University with a business degree. Rebecca lives in Healdsburg, California with her husband, Allen; daugher, Jessica; and two sons, Mark and Max, along with her favorite pet beagle, Angel.
|
|
|
Facilities Manager
|
As the facilities engineer of Rack & Riddle Custom Wine Services, Stan first found himself knee-deep in the non-stop construction activity germane to building a sterling 500,000 case custom crush facility. It was the latest and most exciting challenge in Stan’s distinguished career which started as Project Engineer for Container Technology Corporation in Denver, Colorado. Trading the snowy peaks of Colorado for the sunny coast of California, Stan became the Vice President of Sales for Womack International, an equipment supply company to the container industry, which eventually led to his current position at Rack & Riddle.
Stan holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Industrial Technology from SE Missouri State. He lives in Petaluma with his son Christopher. His daughter Ashley attends Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Los Angeles where she is studying to be a graphic designer in the entertainment industry.
|
| Penelope (Penny) Gadd-Coster |
|
Winemaker
|
Pennys interest in wine began when her family moved to the Livermore Valley. However it took a few years and the words of a friend to convince her that making wine was a career that did not require belonging to a winemaking family. In 1986 she landed a job as crush help at Jordan Vineyards & Winery, which lead to a 13 year career at Jordan. She was there for the inception of J Vineyards and Winery. In 1999 she was hired as the Assistant Winemaker for J, eventually working her way up to the Sparkling Winemaker position.
In 2007, Penny left J to work as a Winemaker for Rack & Riddle Custom Wine Services. She also has her own brand, Coral Mustang, making Tempranillo wines.
Outside of wine, she loves cooking, fly fishing, gardening, and traveling.
“Working for R&R has given me the opportunity to be an integral part of a new company that is being built from the ground up, just like my career”.
|
|
|
V.P. Business Development
|
.jpg) Marching into the New Year, the founders of Rack & Riddle sought fresh opportunities to further expand their growing business. Mark Garaventa was the perfect fit for this position. With unique background in sales, marketing and financial development, and a drive to be an integral part in the growth and development of a promising company, Mark was immediately welcomed as a member to the Rack & Riddle team.
Born and raised locally, Mark brings nearly 20+ years of senior management experience and leadership to Rack & Riddle. Having hit the ground running since earning his degree from St. Mary's College in 1988, Mark possesses talents and experience ranging from working in a family business in the 1990's to running national sales for a large corporation. Mark's business acumen and consistency are a natural fit with the team at Rack & Riddle. As Managing Partner Bruce Lundquist said recently, "When Mark became available, we grabbed him. Our instinct said this was the perfect guy to take us into the next tier as a business and, trying to figure out how to better serve our clients and customers. He is a natural fit with our boots-on-the-ground approach to doing business and we are lucky to have him, as are our clients."
Mark currently resides in Sonoma County with his wife, and three children. Mark is an avid wine enthusiast, but spends most weekends with his family, coaching team sports, enjoying his children's activities, or brushing up on his golf game. Mark is driven and finds joy in his successes with which he will happily raise a glass to toast. |
|
|
Production Manager
|
Lisa joins Rack & Riddle Custom Wine Services after more than 18 years of experience as a warehouse and production manager. She spent nine years as a production manager for J Vineyards & Winery, managing day-to-day production activities. Over the years she has planned, implemented and facilitated all production/harvest operations. She earned a reputation for integrity and hard work, especially in the field of custom services.
Lisa is extremely proud to be part of the Rack & Riddle family.
When away from work, Lisa is an animal lover. She spends a lot of her time caring for her two dogs, two horses, two goats, six cats and numerous chickens.
|
|
|
Cellar Master
.......Forever part of the Heart & Soul of Rack & Riddle.......
|
Our most gentle and likeable colleague at Rack & Riddle, Tom Meeker left us to work in the Lord's cellar in the Spring of 2010. Beloved by all that knew him, Tom's personality and approach to life and work was one of practicality, purpose.....sprinkled with humor and mirth - usually at the expense of one of his friends!
Tom was a pilgrim from Wyoming, where he left behind the Grand Tetons for the rolling valleys of Sonoma County. He settled in Healdsburg where he and wife Darla raised their two wonderful children. Tom began his wine career in 1975 in the cellars of the legendary historic Italian Swiss Colony Winery at Asti. Years later he became the revered Cellar Master of Piper Sonoma Winery and J Vineyards & Winery in Healdsburg. Blessedly, he found his way to all of us at Rack & Riddle, where he built our cellar from the ground up. The quality of our wines is reflective of the hard work and long hours Tom devoted to our clients in the never-ending effort to make his cellar second-to-none. His departure was both unexpected and devastating to all of us who had come to love him as a dear friend and sage wit.
It is rare when a singular person can touch so many lives, and live on in their hearts and souls. So, as you wander among the offices and facilities that comprise Rack & Riddle, you will see pictures of Tom adorning many walls and doors. Not as a symbol of our inability to let go of his memory, but rather as a reminder of how fortunate and lucky we were to call this remarkable man our friend...........
|
|
|
