Christy Ackerman was first attracted to the wine industry when she was a harvest intern at Murphy-Goode Estate Winery, becoming passionate about winemaking because it is art and chemistry combined, and it is a very hands-on profession.

After receiving her enology degree in 2001 from California State University, Fresno, she held a five-year tenure as assistant winemaker at Jordan Vineyards & Winery. Christy then joined Ferrari-Carano Vineyards and Winery in 2006 as associate winemaker, focusing on its Russian River Valley and Anderson Valley Pinot Noirs.

This experience led Christy to Lazy Creek Vineyards in Mendocino County in 2008, shortly after the owners of Ferrari-Carano purchased the property. As the winemaker at Lazy Creek, she led the winemaking team, with the goal of allowing the land to express itself in the wines with minimal intervention. In 2019, she returned to Ferrari-Carano as associate winemaker for red wines and is delighted to be splitting her time between Mendocino County and the Sonoma Valley.

Christy will tell you that winemaking is all about the senses, whether it is the look and smell of a vineyard in bloom, a cellar full of fragrant fermenting juice, the foaming, crackling sound of fermentation, or the satisfaction of seeing someone enjoying a glass of wine that she had a part in crafting.

A woman of varied interests, Christy grows her own organic vegetables, loves animals, cooking, campfires, spaghetti westerns, and road trips. She and her husband, Terry, live in Windsor.