Elizabeth and Clarke Swanson. ". Says, Bill, pictured here with Deborah, Ultimately were building a culture around wine and hospitality that we all hope will last for generations. Theres so much growth in being able to explore new creative endeavors, and thats what I think is so fascinating about life, says Alexis Traina. Inside Alexis Traina's 'From Napa With Love' Book Launch - Haute Living It was as if true refinement had sprung to life. I worked late at night, on plane rides, or whenever I could find the time, and designed the book with my longtime graphic designer, Alyssa. If you purchase an Italian wine apprenticeship with master sommelier David Lynch ($3,200), the box will be lined with corks. Both Trevor and Alexis grew up absorbing exuberant taste as a baba soaks up rum. From Hollywood talents to art-world tastemakers to tech titans, each month we interview the leading lights who make this state the creative and entrepreneurial center of the country. Crabb. I wondered if wed live near Lorenzo Lamas. Alexis Traina, "Gigi Burris makes insane hats all year round, but Im particularly fond of this straw stetson with an extra broad rim." Trevor Traina has been married once. Sam Whiting is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. You may opt-out by. THROUGH WINE." -ALEXIS SWANSON TRAINA, SWANSON VINEYARDS CREATIVE DIRECTOR SWANSON SIP SHOPPE is delightfully whimsical Shoppe, a candy store for adults, showcases sips of Swanson Vineyards' nest library vintages . Creative Director, Swanson Vineyards. Buy Me! Elizabeths favorite place to entertain is a 1904 utility barn on her property, which she describes as Marie Antoinettes poor sisters ballroom, complete with a special perfume thanks to the henhouse thats attached to it. Love in the Vineyards | HuffPost Life Creative Director, Swanson Vineyards. Raise a glass to the artists, rebels, and dreamers who call this storied California paradise home. He is every bit as knowledgeable about the decorative and decorating arts. "I started hanging out in the computer lab and never once visited career services. The goal was to create a useful guide to the place and to offer a look at the people who make it special. Thats the story.. [13] His hobby is collecting photographs, an exhibition of his collection in summer 2012 at the Fine Arts Museum was discussed in the media. Travel essential number one." The To Kalon vineyards, which are all around us, have several different owners now, but fetch some of the highest prices in the world for grapes, Trevor explains. Trevor Traina has not been divorced. This fall, Claiborne and I shared an amazing story,inspired by my book for Town & CountrysNovemberissue, where she shot all the portraits and that was super special for us both. The odyssey even involved an overnight stay in Pyongyang as a guest of the late Kim Jong Il, who, among other things, was a car aficionado. All of our good times were up here, Trevor, son of the late shipping mogul John Traina and the philanthropist Dede Wilsey, says of the six-acre property. Crabb, a Napa Valley pioneer who founded the To Kalon winery. It was some time before the couple worked out how they could unleash its possibilities. From Napa With Love by Alexis Swanson Traina From Napa With Love , Traina's book is a small (97 inches) paperback tome meant to be easy to throw into a suitcase for a quick trip to the Valley. Meadowood just opened their new spa, and it is pretty incredible and special. Alexis, meanwhile, grew up in a series of homes that were the bravura handiwork of her godfather, the decorator Thomas Britt, working with her mother, Elizabeth Swanson, whom he describes as "high-octane creative. As a child I knew I wanted to do what my grandfather [Robert] and father [Tim] did. " Alexis Traina, .css-1fgik18{color:#323232;display:block;font-family:NewParis,NewParis-fallback,Georgia,Times,serif;font-weight:normal;margin-bottom:0.3125rem;margin-top:0;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;-webkit-font-smoothing:auto;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-1fgik18:hover{color:link-hover;}}@media(max-width: 48rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 40.625rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.3125rem;line-height:1.2;}}Shop Our Favorite Saks Friends & Family Deals, Stylish Denim Jackets for the Transitional Season, Stylish Fisherman Sandals to Wear This Season, Heres Where to Get Taylors Single Era Heels, A Cult-Status Bag That Lives Up to Its Hype. Photographed & Styled By Claiborne Swanson Frank, The Best Luxury Luggage for Traveling in Style, From Town & Country for Bermuda Tourism Authority, Your Privacy Choices: Opt Out of Sale/Targeted Ads. I've spent my entire life as a connector of people," Trevor Traina says in his cozy San Francisco den. So much of HiNote is about self expression in technicolor, and its the idea of being able to tell your story digitally.. Over the course of the next decade, he and his partners founded and sold three more tech companies: SchemaLogic (a document-management service), StepUp Commerce (which connected retailers with online shoppers) and DriverSide.com (a site on which car owners could manage their vehicle maintenance). Being curious and eccentric was normal. Soon I too succumbed to the valleys charms and convinced my dad that he needed to hire me. Often well put the kids to bed and then take a walk, he says. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Cond Nast. Arriving at their historic, Victorian-style Oakville home, its easy to understand why the pairknown for their notable art collection, philanthropy and omnipresence on the San Francisco social scenepack up their kids almost every weekend and head here to unwind. Alexis Traina's birthday is 09/19/1970 and is 52 years old. As my temporary unemployment began, I knew I wanted to use my free time to tell the story of the valley, and to do it in a way that would illuminate the fact that life here is no longer centered exclusively on wine. They ran the winery for more than 30 years before selling it in 2016, and it's where Alexis honed her instincts for celebrating the ceremonies and rituals of winefirst, with the introduction of a salon-style tasting room, then a modern sip shoppe. Raising $3 million from angel investors, including his neighbors Mark Pincus and Jeremy Stoppelman, plus Yahoo CEO Marissa Mayer, Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff and Russian billionaire Yuri Milner, Traina launched IfOnly (ifonly.com) late last year. .css-188hsmf{-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;text-decoration-thickness:0.0625rem;text-decoration-color:inherit;text-underline-offset:0.25rem;color:#fff;-webkit-transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;transition:all 0.3s ease-in-out;display:inline-block;background-color:#9a0500;font-family:Termina,Termina-bold-fallback,Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:0.75rem;line-height:1;font-weight:bold;letter-spacing:0.02rem;padding:0.6rem 0.7rem;text-transform:uppercase;width:auto;}.css-188hsmf:hover{color:#fff;text-decoration-color:border-link-body-hover;background-color:#030929;}.css-188hsmf:focus-visible{outline-color:body-cta-btn-link-focus;}Subscribe Now, .css-1fgik18{color:#323232;display:block;font-family:NewParis,NewParis-fallback,Georgia,Times,serif;font-weight:normal;margin-bottom:0.3125rem;margin-top:0;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;-webkit-font-smoothing:auto;}@media (any-hover: hover){.css-1fgik18:hover{color:link-hover;}}@media(max-width: 48rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 40.625rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.0625rem;line-height:1.2;}}@media(min-width: 64rem){.css-1fgik18{font-size:1.3125rem;line-height:1.2;}}The Best Luxury Luggage for Traveling in Style, The Best Room at Tuscany's Augustus Hotel, A New Bemelmans Gallery Is Opening at Ocean House, 29 Getaway Spas for Every Type of Retreat, The Perfect Honeymoon Isn't All Over InstagramYet, The Best Carry-On Backpacks for Every Traveler, The Best Rolling Luggage for Your Travels, Inside the 60th Anniversary of the Ocean Club. Theres an appreciation for simple pleasures, like swimming at sunset, water-balloon fights, cookie baking and bike rides. Alexis Swanson Traina, the San Francisco-based author and renowned authority on wine, style, and entertaining, celebrates the launch of her new book, From Napa With Love. Sam Whiting has been a staff writer at The San Francisco Chronicle since 1988. Crabb, a Napa Valley pioneer who founded the To Kalon winery. Alexis Traina was reunited with her familyher sisters, fashion designer Veronica Swanson Beard and photographer Claiborne Swanson Frank, and parents were in Austria for the celebration. This story appears in the November 2017 issue of Town & Country. It took a leap of faith to get the family house before the family." The landscape architect Madison Cox, who created the elegant treillage-framed white gardens, suggested that the front doors be painted lacquer red, an antic touch that hints at the drama inside. Yes, tourists still pack tasting rooms and trek wine trails, but Napa Valley has also become a haven for entertaining, hobnobbing, creating, and soul-searching. Month. Weekends in Oakville are generally spent sans guests and are passed mostly outsideby the pool or on the tennis courtsin the company of the Trainas two children, Johnny and Delphina, and their Jack Russell terrier, Honey. This is a family home; its very comfortable and familiar., The decor is an assemblage of styles, though most are heirlooms and antiques set in place by Trevors mother. My sisters and I each found our creative passions early in life. My fantasy was to be a gentleman farmer with three grapevines and art. In the 1880s, Crabb added an addition to the home,and after a terrible fire in 1997, the home was nearly completely rebuilt. For me it has always been the peoplea tapestry of interwoven multigenerational tribes made up of families, farmers, field-workers, wine- makers, chefs, and creative talent of all sorts. Alexis and I were married there on the front lawn, Trevor recalls, and our son was christened here. Since her family moved to Northern California in 1985, Alexis has shuffled between her city home in San Francisco and her idyllic vineyard spread in the Valley. And then one day, the pay phone rang in the hallway of my dormitoryit was my Dad calling, with news: Were moving. A donor to Republican causes, Traina had sought the posting in Austria because his maternal grandfather, Wiley T. Buchanan, had served in the same post under President Gerald Ford.