MEET THE TEAM
GREGORY & MADIGAN AHN
PROPRIETORS, CEO & CPO
A recovering corporate refugee turned serial entrepreneur, Greg is living proof that you can graduate college with a degree in Poetry, and still make a living. His super power allows him to solve any small problem by creating a much bigger problem, usually in the form of a new venture. Luckily the pandemic slowed him down enough to adopt a new mantra: Less but Better. We'll see if he can pull that off.
Recognizing that she could do twice the work in half the time, Madigan reluctantly came to Greg's rescue in 2015 and took charge of all administrative and human resources responsibilities across the wineries, restaurants, and other businesses, going from three kids to 200. She is the heart and inspiration of Folktale...so this is all really her fault, not Greg's :-)
DAVID BAIRD
WINEMAKER
David Baird is an innovative winemaker with his roots deeply grown in the vineyards of the Central Coast of California. With his winemaking degree from Cal Poly, David has previously made wine at Halter Ranch, Edna Valley, Justin Winery and Fess Parker.
In 2015, David moved back home to the Monterey peninsula where he began collaborating with Greg and Madigan. Together they opened Folktale Winery & Vineyards in the summer of 2015, with a focus on high quality, delicious wines that embrace organic farming and natural winemaking. A blank slate for Baird, the opportunity to establish an entirely new winemaking strategy for a brand-new winery was a little daunting at first, but ultimately has provided the freedom to be creative. “There is a lot of fear and adventure in creating wines for a new winery. There’s no safety net below you. During our first year at Folktale we played it safe with very practical decisions. Since then, we’ve had a lot of fun creating new small batch wines like a Pet-Nat, whole cluster barrel fermented Syrah, and a Rosé of Grenache Blanc.”
Folktale is the perfect place to stretch his wings. Having grown to nearly 500 acres of estate vines in Monterey County, the winery offers exceptional opportunities to innovate. “The Central Coast offers such an excellent selection of varietals, but it hasn’t seen much winemaking development over the last 50 years. My goal is to reinvent the wheel a little, refreshing old techniques to come up with new ideas. We want to have some fun while evolving as a winery and as a brand, all the while focusing on fine wines that people will enjoy, and new wines that people may not otherwise try.”
JEFF OTTOBONI
COO
If Jeff Ottoboni wasn't such a good guy, we'd hate him for being such an overachiever. Growing up in Modesto, he started working at Gallo as a teenager. He went off to Notre Dame for undergrad, and then directly to UCLA for law school. He passed the CA State Bar, and went right back to work for Gallo. He earned just about every financial certification available to man before joining Cuvaison Winery as CFO, then President of David Bruce Winery. Looking for more mountains to climb, he joined a vineyard acquisition and management company start-up, overseeing $450 million in assets, then took on the successful turnaround of importer/distributor Wilson-Daniels. In his free time, he earned his CWS, CSS, and Level III WSET in Wine and Spirits, and became a Tri-athlete (ugh, so annoying). His most recent experience took him to global wine icon Paul Hobbs Winery, before joining North Coast Brewing as CEO...yes, beer! After 30 years of slaying dragons, he faces his biggest challenge yet...Folktale, in all of its wine, spirits, vineyard, distribution, restaurant, hospitality glory. He's going for world domination...and we're not going to get in his way.
Raquel Clark
CFO
With an unhealthy love of numbers and an unstoppable spirit, Raquel keeps the stacks in order across the various businesses and projects in the world of Folktale.
Raquel first met Greg at Constellation Wines before she left to be the Director of Accounting for the next 10 years at for Talbott Vineyards. So, she knows a thing or two about wineries and colorful owners, which makes her perfect for her role controlling the creative minds at Folktale.
HUNTER JEWETT
NATIONAL SALES DIRECTOR
Hunter Jewett, recruited into the wine industry out of Ole Miss, has been happily trapped in the beverage industry since 1997. Based out of Chicago, IL with his wife, five kids (don’t ask) and his ever faithful Vizsla, Sam. In addition to the Midwest, Hunter has spent significant time in the Florida and Texas markets. When not managing distributors, selling wine, carting kids around, fixing things around the house, yard work, cooking or helping with homework, Hunter likes to swim, bike, and run (three Ironman’s completed). Hunter is and avid fly fisher and bow hunter. On fall days he dreams of being in the woods hunting huge Illinois White Tails from his deer stand. In the spring, he dreams of standing in the cold rivers of Michigan casting feathers to big Steelhead. Did we mention he has 5 kids?!