Karissa Kruse named Wine Enthusiast’s 2026 Wine Executive of the Year
The Sonoma County Winegrowers CEO received the Wine Star Award for her work in sustainable winegrowing, agricultural innovation, marketing and industry collaboration. She will be honored in San Francisco on January 25, 2027.
Wine Star recognition
Wine Enthusiast has named Karissa Kruse, CEO of Sonoma County Winegrowers, its 2026 Wine Executive of the Year as part of the publication’s Wine Star Awards. The award recognizes her contributions to wine marketing, agricultural leadership and cooperation between Sonoma County growers and wineries. Wine Enthusiast characterized Kruse as an industry outsider pursuing new avenues for growth while Sonoma County confronts pressures also affecting other wine regions worldwide.1
Kruse said the award gave her an opportunity to represent Sonoma County’s farmers, winemakers and wider community. She credited the organization’s staff and board with supporting new ideas and taking risks. Tyler Klick, chairman of the Sonoma County Winegrowers board and a partner at Redwood Empire Vineyard Management, said her ability to identify opportunities, unite people and implement ambitious projects had expanded what the region could achieve.1
Kruse will receive the honor at Wine Enthusiast’s 27th annual Wine Star Awards gala in San Francisco on January 25, 2027.1
Sustainability, technology and new audiences
Since becoming CEO in 2013, Kruse has worked to establish Sonoma County as a leader in sustainable viticulture, agricultural innovation and inventive marketing. During her tenure, 99% of the county’s vineyard acreage became certified sustainable, while the organization introduced its Farm of the Future program and formed partnerships intended to reach consumers beyond conventional wine-industry channels.1
Consumer-facing partnerships have included the San Francisco Giants, the Coachella Valley Firebirds, Landry’s and Lettuce Entertain You Enterprises. Farm of the Future, conceived as a real-world testing ground for agricultural technology, has involved collaborations with John Deere, Ford Pro and Wilbur-Ellis.1
Kruse also serves as executive director of the Sonoma County Grape Growers Foundation, where she has promoted support for vineyard workers and their families. Its programs include what the organization describes as the first Vineyard Employee Leadership Academy in the United States.1
A unified regional organization
In 2026, Kruse helped bring Sonoma County’s grower and winery communities together within one organization. A Sonoma County Wine membership program is scheduled to launch in January 2027, with the stated aims of strengthening cooperation, developing new opportunities and presenting a unified voice in the promotion of the county’s wines. Wine Enthusiast cited the merger as another example of Kruse accomplishing a goal previously regarded as unattainable.1
Sonoma County Winegrowers represents more than 1,800 wine-grape growers and works with winery partners on marketing, education, sustainability and innovation. Its mission includes supporting the county’s agricultural community and connecting consumers with the people and places behind its wines.1
Career and ties to Sonoma County wine
Before joining Sonoma County Winegrowers, Kruse held marketing and business positions at General Mills, Universal Studios and Dairy Management Inc. She earned a bachelor’s degree in economics and an MBA in marketing from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.1
Kruse and her husband, fifth-generation Sonoma County farmer Steve Dutton, own Dutton-Goldfield Winery.1
Sources
Written by the Dionysus editors from the sources above.
