by Maiah Johnson Dunn
Nova Cadamatre’s introduction to wine wasn’t one of those Hallmark moments. There were no special bottle and no big epiphany over a sip. “My love started with the vines,” she said with a smile.
Cadamatre was 19 years old when she decided to follow her fascination with horticulture from her home in South Carolina to New York State. She was a skilled horticulturist with plans to grow roses, but her high school sweetheart, Brian, encouraged her to explore the world of wine. His family had vineyards in Italy, and he suggested they consider a winery of their own one day.
Cadamatre took a harvest winemaking apprenticeship at Stargazer’s Vineyard, serving tastings when her schedule allowed. “I loved the nuance of grape growing,” Cadamatre explained. “And, I really enjoy the fact that one person can grow a crop, make something very wonderful out of it and be part of selling it to the end consumer. In no other industry can one person be that involved in the making and marketing of something.”
She went on to earn her bachelor’s degree in viticulture and enology from Cornell in 2006. She was one of the first students to graduate from the newly launched program. Outside of the classroom, she worked as a cellar and vineyard assistant for Thirsty Owl Wine Company.
Following graduation, Cadamatre travelled to California. Her goal was to learn from the best, then bring those learnings back home to New York when the time was right. She transitioned to a large-scale winery that produced 15 million cases annually. She gained invaluable experience and realized working at that volume was not her life’s goal.
Cadamatre never thought of herself as a barrier breaker. Her grandmother was a chemist, and her father raised her and her sister to believe they could do anything. When she entered the male-dominated wine industry, it seemed normal to her – until colleagues began making comments. “I heard a lot of ‘before you were born’ or ‘you don’t have enough experience,’” Cadamatre recalled.
Everything came together when Cadamatre took on a winemaking role with Constellation Brands, where she worked for nine years. The bulk of her experience was with the Robert Mondavi portfolio.
She worked with and even replanted portions of the famed To Kalon Vineyards, which grows some of Napa’s most sought-after grapes. “I really learned to trust my own instincts while I was at Robert Mondavi,” said Cadamatre, reflecting on that transformative time in her life. In 2014, she was named a Wine Enthusiast Top 40 Under 40 Tastemaker.
Cadamatre became known for pushing boundaries personally and professionally. Over 10 years, she earned two of the wine industry’s most challenging credentials: the Wine & Spirits Education Trust Diploma and the Master of Wine (MW) designation.
“I thought if I got the MW, then no one could tell me I didn’t know what I was talking about.” The program is known for an exceptionally low pass rate. Since its inception in 1953, only 517 people have passed the MW exam. In 2017, Cadamatre made history as the first female winemaker in the U.S. to earn the title. Today, there are just three.
At work, Cadamatre ushered forward Mondavi’s legacy of excellence. “When you take over such an iconic brand, there needs to be a balance between respect for the past, but also a focus on innovation. Robert was so focused on ‘what’s next’ that it always felt like innovation was built into the very foundation of the winery.” In 2022, her efforts landed a Mondavi Cabernet Sauvignon at number 6 on the Wine Spectator Top 100. It was the brand’s first time on the list in 11 years.
Between runs at Mondavi, Cadamatre returned to the Finger Lakes in 2015 to oversee winemaking at Canandaigua Winery. While home, she and her husband purchased 12 acres on Seneca Lake, perfect for their dream of an estate winery when the time was right.
COVID offered time for reflection. Cadamatre was a fresh mom of two young boys and realized it was time to refocus her energy. She doubled down on Trestle Thirty One.
With her family’s support, she built the brand from the ground up. They purchased a building in Geneva that became a wine lounge and Airbnb. It was perhaps an untraditional beginning for a winery in the Finger Lakes Region, but certainly a smart start for a fully self-funded business.
Beyond Trestle, Cadamatre is known as “the flying winemaker.” She runs Snowshell Vineyards with Finger Lakes fruit sold by direct-to-consumer retailer, Naked Wines. Her passion for Napa Cabernet Sauvignon manifested into Fiadh Ruadh, an allocation-only brand and one of her favorite wines to make. Cadamatre also recently launched Sorèlune in October 2025, a woman-owned and grown brand in Napa Corneros. She also consults with Heron Hill Winery locally and Đoi Dá in Napa.
Cadamatre is a bicoastal warrior, travelling back and forth weekly during the harvest season. “I tend to be in Napa quite a bit in February. My southern blood has never really adjusted to the cold winters,” she said with a laugh.
Though she loves the warmth, Cadamatre also loves the creativity New York allows. She describes the wine industry here as scrappy and experimental. “There are no unspoken rules yet,” she explained. “We really don’t know where the ceiling is, so there are a bunch of us just trying things to see what moves the needle forward.”
This year, Cadamatre celebrated the 10th anniversary of Trestle Thirty One. She plans to transform her 12-acre property into the winery’s permanent home. When not traveling between wine regions, she’s editing her upcoming book about transforming failure into motivation for success.
This life is fitting for Cadamatre, who publishes the term YOLO (you only live once) on the back of her wine labels. “It is a reminder to take the risks even if they are scary,” she said. “Live life to the fullest. Even if this entire thing crashed and burned in a few years, I would have been happy that I took the chance on myself. I know I would have regretted not taking that bet.”
