Meet The Tricyclists!

This is the tricycle team, in all its glory.
Scroll down and you'll find out how we got into the trouble we are currently in.

Arpad G. Molnar, Managing Partner

Still not sure how he finds himself in the wine business, Arpad is the herder of the group and keeps the trains running on time. He was instrumental in getting Peter and Michael to think about making a business out of their little wine hobby and spends his time thinking about strategy, marketing (writing copy!), and finance. Moons ago, Arpad worked for a tiny company called GE and a strategy consulting company known as the Boston Consulting Group, and went to a certain East Coast business school. Arpad traded Silicon Valley for Napa Valley, which he assures you is a good trade. He lives with his wife, his two little boys, their guinea pig "Fluffy", baby Kenyan Sand Boa "Sandy", and pet fish "Fireball" (previous fish Claribel, Andy, and Scampers: RIP).

Peter K. Molnar, Barrels & Vines

In his day job, Peter oversees the Kádár Hungary cooperage as well as our two vineyards. He spends the summer watching grapes grow and the fall sourcing wood in the oak forests of Tokaj. Tough life, but somebody has to live it. After graduating from Cornell, Peter spent the early 1990s in Hungary building a winery and learning that he was not at all interested in a desk job. He lives with his wife, twins, and dog Wendell, who doubles as our vineyard dog.

Michael B. Terrien, Founding Winemaker

After his stints in philosophy and fishing (see Kazmer & Blaise history for more on this), Michael decided that winemaking was on the path to an even more romantic life. After getting his Masters in Enology from the University of California, Davis, Michael joined Acacia Winery where he honed his cool-climate Carneros winemaking skills and rose to winemaker and general manager. His Acacia Pinot Noir was rated among the top 100 wines in the world by Wine Spectator. Currently, in addition to his role at Tricycle Wine Co., Michael consults for Kenzo Estate, Grieve Family, as well as a handful of other wineries. He lives with his wife Hannah Henry (also our designer - see  HH-Studio for more), their son, two daughters, and one rabbit.

Kent Fortner, General Manager

Kent “Miracle Worker” Fortner teaches us that not only do you have to make good wine, but you also have to sell it if you want to keep making more (see Kazmer & Blaise history). After rocketing through the sales ranks at Chalone and then working at Luna Vineyards as VP of sales, Kent embarked on a more entrepreneurial path with his own label, Road 31 (hey, it's Napa — everyone has their own label), as well as with Tricycle Wine Co. Don't let the Kansas grin fool you; this man is all business. He lives with his wife, son, daughter, and plenty of dogs and cats rescued from various shelters, whose names we can't keep straight, much less remember.

Alex Beloz, Winemaking

Alex hails from America's Third Coast, or as most people call it, Chicago. He put a degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Illinois to good use by moonlighting in wine retail in the Windy City. In 1998, the siren song of the grapes lured him to Carneros to work a harvest at MacRostie Winery and from there he worked his way up from cellar hand to cellar master and finally to winemaker (his hardscrabble story brings a tear to the eye). After perfecting cool climate Pinot Noirs and Chardonnays, Alex set off to work harvests in Bordeaux, New Zealand, and Chile to round out his knowledge of varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and (gasp!) Merlot. Now back in Napa, he is intently focused and dedicated to boutique wines of uncompromising quality (we bless him each day for that). Alex lives in Sonoma with his wife Jennifer, who is the director of winemaking at Ravenswood Winery.

Susan Pereira, Office Manager

While it's very special that the boys have their little sketches up above, the real power runs through me, Susan Pereira. I am Tricycle Wine Co.'s office manager. I keep the boys in line (see sketch), and if you really want to get some wine between pre-release mailings, talk to me. That said, I am really just a softie at heart. Besides wine, my other hobbies are my husband Robert and two kids whom I get to see fairly frequently except during wine releases — oh, and harvest.

Diana Lucz, Sales Manager

Diana is the latest addition to team Tricycle. We stole her from Cain Vineyards, who had stolen her from Gundlach Bundschu, who had stolen her from Stag’s Leap (with Robert Mondavi in there somewhere as well). From all accounts, she had a nice upbringing in 117 degree heat in Arizona, where she eventually went to work at a wine shop. And just in case we haven’t listed enough experience, she also spent some time in the wholesale side of the wine business in New Jersey and North Carolina. While she has a home just a few blocks off the square in Sonoma, she spends most of her time living back in that 117 degree heat in Arizona, where she and her two cats direct nationwide sales. Diana, by far, earns the most frequent flyers miles of us all.