UC Davis grad in Idaho raising profile of Armenia wine

Great Northwest Wine

9/14/20266 min read

Jeff Ritchey, a geologist living in Boise, Idaho, with a master’s degree in enology from University of California, Davis, serves as consulting winemaker for award-winning Alexandrea Wines in the Eurasian nation of Armenia. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Ritchey)

Originally published by Liza B. Zimmerman at Great Northwest Wine - https://greatnorthwestwine.com/2026/09/14/uc-davis-grad-in-idaho-raising-profile-of-armenia-wine/

Take a West Coast geologist, get them inspired about wine and there is no telling where they will land.

In Jeff Ritchey’s case, the Idaho-based winemaker spends several months in the far-flung vineyards of Alexandrea Winery in the Republic of Armenia, a nation between the Black and Caspian seas in the Caucasus Mountains that has been making wine for millennia.

Armenia’s Areni-1 Cave, in the sparsely populated region of Vayots Dzor on the Azerbaijani border, was formally discovered in 2007. The site shows evidence of winemaking dating to approximately 4000 Cal BC, making Areni-1 the location of the earliest-known winery in the world, according to the UNESCO World Heritage Centre. Alexandrea has a future vineyard site in Voyots Dzor, and already has estate plantings in Aragatsotn and Kotayk provinces.

The Vine and Wine Foundation of Armenia’s newest tagline to promote its wines is “Armenia, the newest oldest wine country.” It was displayed on every available poster in town when I was in Yerevan judging a wine competition. It’s a fitting tagline in many ways.

That suits a country that seems to be exploding with innovation and welcoming new waves of tourism to its relatively safe, regional food- and wine-filled, English-speaking shores. It is also a call to action for a country that continues to pivot its focus to winemaking after being forced — for decades — to be primarily a brandy producer while it was part of the former Soviet Union until 1991.

It is also one that seems to apply to Ritchey’s focus at Alexandrea Winery, where he began making wine for a friend in 2021.

The Boise Backstory

A man holding a glass of white wine in front of crates filled with harvested purple grapes at a winery facility.

Wine event poster for Alexandrea Winery featuring winemakers and a vineyard illustration with 100 percent Pinot Noir text.

Adam Kablanian, left, and Jeff Ritchey began collaborating on wine projects in California prior to their work in Armenia on Alexandrea Winery. (Image courtesy of Alexandrea Winery)

Ritchey grew up in the Silicon Valley, where his father served as an engineer for more than 60 years. Rather than follow in the same career path, Ritchey earned a geology degree from University of California, Santa Barbara. He was back in the Bay Area working for a geotech firm when coverage surrounding “the French Paradox” came out in 1991.

“I was intrigued,” Ritchey remembers. “I lived next to a high-end grocery store and would stare at all the choices of wine and slowly started learning. I found out Davis had a program, so I applied.”

After graduating from UC Davis in 1996 with a master’s in enology, Ritchey worked at Clos LaChance Winery south of San Jose from 1997 to 2003, making the usual California varietals from Chardonnay to Pinot Noir and Cabernet Sauvignon. He left in 2003 to start his own label, Sensorium, and consult for a number of wineries in the Santa Cruz Mountains and Santa Lucia Highlands.

Along the way, Ritchey seized upon an opportunity to partner with a friend to launch a solar photovoltaic company — Clean Solar.

“I have long been an environmental advocate, but I also joke that I had to start a solar company to support my winemaking habit,” he says. “So many people make their money first and then start a winery. I did the opposite.”

In 2018, four years after ending Sensorium, Ritchey had a chance to visit Idaho’s sun-soaked state capital of Boise. He was charmed by how athletic and neighborly the town was, and the terroir and altitude of the Snake River Valley fascinated him. Within a year, he moved to Boise, just three hours door-to-door from his solar company and winery clients in California.

“I’m 16 miles from the ski slope, and it’s $500 a year for a pass,” Ritchey says. “I’m a block and a half from 200 miles of hiking and biking trails and a mile and half from downtown. People bike everywhere; they are friendly, and it’s vibrant.”

Ritchey hasn’t lined up consulting work in the Snake River Valley, but he is a happy member of the Treasure Valley wine community and serves as a judge for the Idaho Wine Competition.

The Armenian Connection

Aerial view of a green vineyard plantation and a water reservoir pond in a dry, arid desert landscape.

Nor Yedesia Vineyard, an estate planting for Alexandrea Winery in Armenia’s Aragatsotn Province, features Areni and Sireni as well as Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Merlot and Syrah. (Photo courtesy of Jeff Ritchey)

While working for Sensorium, Ritchey’s best client was a Bay Area Armenia-American businessman — Adam Kablanian, who had a small vineyard in California. They became friends, and Kablanian often spoke of Armenia’s ancient history of winemaking and the beauty of its vineyards.

As the region’s only primarily Christian country, Armenia has long had a leg up on its Muslims neighbors and the governments that don’t support the wine industry. Turkey struggles with the small percentage of wine grapes that are permitted to be used for wine. Iran hasn’t produced wine since the fall of the Shah in 1979.

Ritchey decided to join Kablanian in 2017 on a trek of Armenian, where they visited the Areni-1 cave. He fell in love with the beauty of the country and the dynamism of its wines, so Ritchey decided to take on the winemaking for Kablanian’s new Armenian adventure — Alexandrea Winery.

Winemaking in California is a cakewalk, “compared to Armenia,” Ritchey says. “The vineyards are located at 4,000 feet, the sun is intense and the growing season is shorter. You have to maximize all the flavors coming from the grapes, and you can’t hide anything like too much oak or high alcohol like California wines.”

Acclaim for Alexandrea validates Kablanian’s vision

Panoramic view of a lush green vineyard in Armenia with the snow-capped peaks of Mount Ararat under a clear blue sky.

Alexandrea Winery will use its Proshyan Vineyard and views of Mount Ararat as the setting for its future production facility. (Photo by Jeff Ritchey)

Alexandrea produces eight different wines, several featuring indigenous grapes such as Areni and Voskehat. Recent international acclaim for Alexandrea’s portfolio includes a gold medal for the Pinot Noir at the 2026 Concours Mondial de Bruxelles and a gold medal and class champion for the Areni at Houston’s 2026 Rodeo Uncorked, as well as a silver and 91 points from the 2026 Decanter World Wine Awards.

“We entered six wines at Houston and got two double gold medals, two golds and two silvers,” Ritchey points out. “Three of those six got best-of-class awards.”

Harvest for Alexandrea’s 2026 vintage began Sept. 10, and Ritchey arrived for the start of crush. Overall, he spends about three months a year in Armenia, and he enjoys sharing insight into the award-winning wines he crafts there.

“The local varietal – Khndoghni — has become my favorite,” he says. “It produces dark-colored, elegant and deeply-dark fruit flavored wines.”

Alexandrea Winery exports its wines into Texas, Maryland, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and his adopted hometown of Boise through the company’s own Alexandrea Import, LLC. Tariffs remain a point of concern, yet the wines are priced modestly at $24 on average.

“Armenian wine is a very niche product,” Ritchey says. “Not many people have heard of it, let alone tasted it. It’s a handsell, so it takes a lot of effort to sell, but we are making good progress.”

And the international awards help serve as validation for Kablanian’s vision and investments in his Nor Yedesia and Proshyan vineyards. The setting for Alexandrea’s future production facility are among the reasons for Ritchey’s continued interest.

“Mount Ararat will be the backdrop for our winery once it’s built,” Ritchey says.

For more on select wines from Armenia, read Liza B. Zimmerman’s reviews for TheAlcoholProfessor.com.

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About Liza B. Zimmerman

Liza B. Zimmerman is a journalist, wine judge, travel writer, educator and consultant focused on wine, cocktails and food. She grew up in New York City, spent much of her career in the Bay Area, earned her diploma from the Wine & Spirit Education Trust and now lives in Florida. Her website is LizaTheWineChick.com.