Mary Weber Novak — pioneer in Napa wine industry
Mary Weber Novak, founder of Spottswoode Estate Vineyard and Winery in St. Helena and a pioneering woman in the Napa Valley wine industry, died last Sunday of cancer. She was 84.
When Ms. Novak and her husband, Jack Novak, purchased their 46-acre property in 1972, they shared a vision of restoring the historic Spottswoode vineyard to greatness. But Jack Novak’s unexpected death from a heart attack in 1977 left Ms. Novak with the estate entirely in her own care — and with five young children, too.
Spottswoode has long been run by women — a rarity among Napa estates of its age. Throughout her life, Ms. Novak continued to support other women in the wine industry, including former Spottswoode winemakers Mia Klein, Rosemary Cakebread, Pam Starr and Jennifer Williams. Today, the estate is run by her daughters, Beth Novak Milliken and Lindy Novak.
This championing of women, like all that Ms. Novak did, was done quietly. When asked by The Chronicle in 1997 whether her staff then was intentionally all female, Ms. Novak responded: “Heavens, no. It just happened. I am not a strident feminist.”
A passionate steward of the environment, Ms. Novak was also an early adopter of organic viticulture practices, which she established in her vineyard in 1985. Spottswoode obtained organic certification in 1990. Today, the winery relies on solar energy.
Its wines, above all, are some of the greatest in Napa Valley: Year after year, the Estate Cabernet Sauvignon (now made by winemaker Aron Weinkauf) achieves an equilibrium of concentration and elegance, famously described by many critics as “feminine” — floral, subtle and delicate. Ms. Novak’s favorite wine, however, was always Spottswoode’s Sauvignon Blanc.
Mary Weber was born in Los Angeles in 1932, one of five children. She majored in education at Stanford University, graduated in 1954 and began teaching kindergarten in Brentwood (Los Angeles County).
It was at Stanford that Ms. Novak met Jack, a medical student; the couple married in 1956. They moved to San Diego, and Jack opened a medical practice.
When the Novaks took a trip to Napa Valley in 1970, their five children in tow, the valley’s beauty beckoned. They found the Spottswoode property, just west of downtown St. Helena, and were captivated by its gardens and its vineyards which, though impressively long-lived, were in need of some overhaul.
Jack Novak sold his medical practice, and they moved to St. Helena in 1972.
The Spottswoode vineyard was first established in 1882 by George Schoenewald, a restaurant and hotel manager. He built a house on the property modeled on the Del Monte Lodge, a hotel he’d managed on the Monterey Peninsula, and called it Esmeralda. In 1910, the Spotts family took it over, changing the estate’s name to Spottswoode. Upon Prohibition, they stopped growing grapes, and turned instead to raising frogs in the home’s basement — an era commemorated today by frog statues in the home’s gardens. Ms. Novak lived in that house since 1977.
In quintessential preProhibition fashion, the vineyard, when the Novaks acquired it, was planted to grapes like Napa Gamay, French Colombard and Green Hungarian. After taking some classes at UC Davis, the nascent viticulturists decided to replant, mostly to Cabernet Sauvignon.
Jack Novak’s premature death, at age 44, presented a dilemma for Ms. Novak: to sell the estate, or to try to make a living from it. The answer was obvious. “Mother has tremendous strength — quiet, underlying strength,” Lindy, the oldest daughter, told The Chronicle in 1997.
“Mary is able to separate emotions and facts, even under the stress of tragedy,” Lindy added.
Ms. Novak set to work, selling grapes to nearby wineries like Shafer and Duckhorn. In 1982, she decided it was time for Spottswoode to produce its own wine, and she hired winemaker Tony Soter to do it. By the end of the decade, she had stopped selling any fruit to others, keeping everything for the family’s own brand. Daughter Beth, after working for a wine broker in San Francisco, returned home to work for the winery in 1987, and is now its president and CEO. Lindy, who’d been in marketing for Macy’s, joined in 1992; today, she’s the winery’s national marketing director. Beth and her mother served as co-chairs of Auction Napa Valley in 2010.
In recent years, since stepping back from a day-to-day role in the winery, Ms. Novak could frequently be seen around the property, accompanied by her black lab, Riley. She loved gardening, golf and bocce; equally she loved bridge and crossword puzzles.
She is survived by her five children, Lindy Novak (husband Jeff Lahr), Kelley Novak, Beth Novak Milliken (husband John Milliken), Mike Novak (wife Miel Novak), Matt Novak (wife Stephanie Novak) and nine grandchildren, John and Laura Streblow; Sean and Liam Milliken; Nicholas, Alexandra (Audie) and Lael (Poppy) Novak; and Casey and Claire Novak.
A celebration of Ms. Novak’s life will be announced at a later date. In lieu of flowers, the family is asking that donations be made in Ms. Novak’s name to the Land Trust of Napa County or the Trust for Public Land.