Terry L. Stanley (T.L. Stanley) is a Los Angeles–based journalist whose work appears in Muse by Clio, following a long tenure as a senior editor at Adweek. She covers consumer trends, brand innovation, beverage, plant-based/natural foods and cannabis categories, as well as much of the creative work shaping modern marketing.
Her reporting has also appeared in the Los Angeles Times, Mashable, and AdAge. As a speaker and moderator, she offers clear, incisive insights on culture, storytelling, and the evolving relationship between brands and consumers.
Ross Anderson is Vice President of Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) at Jackson Family Wines, where he oversees the company’s DTC channel strategy, including wine-club growth, tasting-room operations, customer-experience activation, and digital retail performance. His role leverages a deep background in wine retail-and-e-commerce to drive consumer engagement and revenue across Jackson Family’s premium portfolio.
With a career spanning across DTC, hospitality, and digital commerce, Ross brings expertise in scaling premium consumer-centric businesses and aligning brand experience with direct-sales growth. Based in St. Helena, California, he works across Jackson Family Wines’ estate network to integrate consumer insights, hospitality innovation and operational best practices to elevate the company’s wine-club and experience portfolio.
Eric Asimov is the chief wine critic of The New York Times and the author of “How to Love Wine: A Memoir and Manifesto,’’ published by William Morrow, and “Wine With Food: Pairing Notes and Recipes From The New York Times,’’ written with recipes by Florence Fabricant and published by Rizzoli.
His column appears in the Food section of The Times. A collection of his columns is included in “The New York Times Book of Wine,’’ published by Sterling Epicure.
He is on social media, @EricAsimov.
Caine Thompson, Head of Sustainability at O’Neill Vintners & Distillers, has cemented his industry leadership in sustainable winegrowing and operations throughout his wine industry career. Since joining O’Neill Vintners & Distillers in 2020, he has led the company to the forefront of regenerative organic innovation and global sustainability networking.
For more than 15 years, Caine has been a leading force in viticultural sustainability. In 2020, He initiated a pioneering three-year regenerative viticulture case study across a 40-acre block of O’Neill’s estate vineyards in Paso Robles. In 2024, all 140 acres of the Paso Robles estate officially became Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC), the most prestigious certification of its kind. Caine also led O’Neill Vintners & Distillers to becoming both the largest B-Corp Certified beverage company and the largest Zero Waste Certified beverage company in the world. Caine was also named by Wine Enthusiast as a “Future 40 Tastemaker” in 2023. The award noted that Caine is “constantly searching for new or forgotten forms of farming to ‘farm softer,’ working to be more transparent in viticultural practices and helping the industry at large become more resilient to climate change.”
Caine’s passion for sustainability extends beyond the company and into the realms of global organizations and think tanks that are setting the pace for the worldwide wine industry. He is one of eight board members on the Regenerative Viticulture Foundation and one of 12 board members on the Sustainable Wine Roundtable. Caine also supports the wine community through board positions with the Wine Institute, Cal Poly University Wine & Viticulture, the Organic Trade Association, and the Paso Robles CAB Collective, where he is Chairman of Viticulture & Wine Research. In 2024, he helped lead a Paso Robles CAB Collective team to a summit in Bordeaux, where they connected with local vintners to discuss climate mitigation strategies and observe future-forward vineyard practices, such as polyculture and agroforestry.
Caine was born and raised in Tauranga, New Zealand and grew up on a family orchard which led tohis interest and studies in horticulture (BSC) at Massey University in New Zealand. He holds an MBA and has multifaceted wine industry experience in executive management, viticultural operations and technical research. His ascent in the wine industry was rapid. He was named New Zealand’s “Young Viticulturist of the Year” in 2009 and earned “Horticulturist of the year” in 2010.
Caine later worked in viticulture and executive leadership at New Zealand and California wineries before joining O’Neill Vintners & Distillers in October 2020, where he has evolved his regenerative viticulture case study to 800 acres in conversion to regenerative farming. He also initiates and implements green practices, leading the charge for sustainable certification for more than 200growers across 15,000 acres on behalf of the entire O’Neill organization. Working with top stakeholders worldwide, Caine continues to embark on innovations that promise to combat climate change, regenerate soil health and conserve natural resources for generations to come.
Courtney O’Brien is a strategic brand leader behind some of the most successful beverage brands in the world. She built Apothic into a $100M+ wine powerhouse, led the U.S. launch and repositioning of Coke Zero into a $1B+ megabrand, and spearheaded Evian’s marketing strategy in one of the most competitive beverage categories.
As founder of The Outlier Initiative, she helps ambitious beverage brands break through the noise, claim their space, and engineer demand – using the same proven strategies that built billion-dollar brands, without the Fortune 500 budget.
Jess Druey is a trailblazing entrepreneur, tastemaker, and the creative force behind Whiny Baby — the California-sourced wine brand rewriting the rules for a new generation of drinkers. Born and raised in Bakersfield, CA, with deep agricultural roots, Jess brings a fresh perspective on the journey from vine to glass. At 22, a simple task — buying wine for a first date — left her overwhelmed and uninspired in the aisle. That moment sparked the idea for Whiny Baby, which she self-launched at 24 with no industry connections. Her bold packaging, interactive design, and authentic storytelling quickly went viral on TikTok, turning Whiny Baby into a movement.
By 26, Jess partnered with the McBride Sisters Wine Company, bringing Whiny Baby into national retailers like Target, Total Wine, and BevMo. Now at 28, Whiny Baby is the only nationally distributed wine brand founded and owned by a Gen Zer — embraced as the gateway wine for a new generation of drinkers. Recognized by Essence Magazine and DTC Newsletter and winner of Gordon Ramsay and Lisa Vanderpump’s Food Stars, Jess has emerged as one of the youngest leaders shaping the industry.
As Founder & Head of Whiny Baby and Emerging Consumer Innovation Consultant with GALLO, Jess continues her mission to welcome the next generation into wine — blending her agricultural roots with a pulse on emerging winemaking practices, packaging trends, and consumer innovation to make wine approachable, expressive, and fun.
Justin Rapolas leads marketing and branding at Aaron Wines, a 23+ year old winery located in Tin City, Paso Robles. With nearly a decade of experience in the wine industry, Justin focuses on utilizing innovative strategies to personalize the consumer experience across all channels. His work combines data-driven insight with authentic storytelling to bring the winery’s personality to life at every point of communication—from email and digital marketing to events and in-person experiences. At Aaron Wines, he helps ensure every interaction feels intentional, connected, and true to the winery’s long-standing Central Coast roots.
Molly has successfully built her career in wine while driving the development of JUSTIN’s vineyards and premium wine brand. When she first joined the team in 2011, her role was specialized in research trials and certifying JUSTIN’s vineyards as sustainable. Fourteen years later, she is honored to be JUSTIN’s Sr. Director of Grower & Community Relations, overseeing all grape sourcing for JUSTIN in addition to the Company’s other brands: Landmark and Lewis. As an integral piece of JUSTIN’s winemaking team, she has established relationships within the wine industry which are incredibly special to her and the winery. Molly also steers the wine brand’s philanthropic efforts, giving back to the community where our employees live and work. Overseeing the Wines Community Grants program in three wine country regions (Paso Robles, Sonoma and Napa) supporting local non-profits and schools. Serving on the Board for the Paso Robles Wine Country Alliance (8 years), Board Director for California Assoc. of Winegrape Growers (4 years), Board Chair for the Cal Poly Wine & Viticulture Department (2 years) and volunteering her time towards fundraising for scholarships for children of vineyard workers, her favorite time of the day is spent catching up with her two young boys and husband playing in their backyard in Templeton.
As of December 2025, Shilah Salmon is Senior Vice President of Marketing at The Duckhorn Portfolio. Previously she was Senior Vice President of Marketing at Jackson Family Wines, a global wine company headquartered in Sonoma County. With nearly 20 years in the wine industry, her career spans international marketing roles—including managing a 40-winery portfolio in 60 countries for Constellation Brands and serving as Global Brand Manager for Robert Mondavi Winery.
At Jackson Family Wines she oversaw brand strategy, creative development, the research and insights department, trade and consumer marketing across their luxury to everyday wine portfolio focused on La Crema and Kendall-Jackson, and in the past on such luxury wineries as Brewer-Clifton, Siduri, Cardinale, Lokoya & Freemark Abbey in Napa Valley
Her academic credentials include undergraduate work in Psychology and Women’s Studies at California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and a business program at UC Berkeley Haas School of Business. She has completed wine studies at UC Davis and the Wine & Spirits Education Trust Advanced Certification program.
