VINTNERS INSTITUTE ACADEMY

Tyler Kyle, teacher, sommelier and translator, was born and raised in Napa Valley wine country and first moved to Europe at eighteen where she began her language studies. It was France that first lured her into wine, sparking a passion that over time has led Tyler to cross several boarders, languages, and disciplines.  

English, Spanish, and French-speaking, Tyler has taught and translated in luxury hotels, restaurants, wineries, culinary institutes, hospitals, police stations, colleges, and ranches. Tyler’s love of teaching is rooted in her love of learning. She earned a Master of Arts in Teaching from the University of Southern California and a Master of Arts in Spanish from California State University Sacramento.  She holds the WSET Diploma, is a Certified Specialist of Wine, Master-Level Champagne Scholar, French Wine Scholar, American Wine Scholar, and Italian Wine Professional.

Tyler currently lives in Napa, Paris, and Austin.

 Miguel García is a Certified Crop Adviser with a PhD in Environmental Sciences and a BS in Environmental Chemistry from UC Riverside. Miguel has been advising farmers and farmworkers on sustainable farming practices since 2016 and he has been working with Napa grapegrowers since 2019 in his role as Sustainable Ag Program Manager for the Napa Resource Conservation District. He provides technical assistance related to soil health, carbon sequestration, erosion control, and water management. He also designs bilingual educational programs aimed at providing local growers and farmworkers with valuable information on topics related to sustainable agriculture. Miguel believes the future of our local water resources and the world’s food security lies heavily in the implementation of sustainable farming practices today. 

Leticia Chacon-Rodriguez was born in Mexico and earned a B.S. degree in Chemical Engineering in 1991from the Universidad Nacional Autonóma de Mexico in Mexico City, her hometown. After working at Allied Domecq for four years, she entered the M.S. program at the University of California, Davis, in 1997, majoring in Food Sciences with an Enology emphasis. While at UC Davis, she worked two harvests as an enologist at Delicato Family Vineyards in the Central Valley and stayed on at the university for nearly two years performing research after graduating in 2000.

Leticia’s stayed in the Central Valley for the next several years, first working for Golden State Vintners as an assistant winemaker for nearly two years and then moving to E&J Gallo Winery as a winemaker for five years, leaving there in mid-2007 for a position with Treasury Wine Estates in Napa as senior winemaker. In mid-2014, she moved to Safe Harbor Wines in Napa as its Director of Operations.

She returned “home” to UC Davis in 2019 as the winery manager and winemaker at the university’s LEED Platinum-certified Teaching and Research Winery. There, Leticia will oversee crush operations and wine production, teach enology students about winery operations and wine production, and assist faculty and researchers with winemaking research projects and trials.

 Monika Elling is a seasoned leader in the global drinks industry with over 20 years of experience including supplier and wholesale executive roles and ultimately as an entrepreneur and CEO, specializing in marketing and brand strategy. Her role was pivotal in the success of brands like Empress 1908 Gin, which saw a $200 million+ exit in 2022. Monika is also recognized for her exceptional wine blending skills, winning accolades from top industry critics.

Her deep knowledge of market trends, consumer behavior, and distribution is coupled with her expertise in digital marketing, blue ocean strategy, and product development. Dedicated to innovation, diversity, and sustainability, her company was selected for the highly prized Goldman Sachs 10KSB program. Monika also holds a certification in Nutritional Psychology, she is also a published author, media contributor, and serves as an advisor and mentor to various startups and industry groups. Her passion is to empower others to succeed at the intersection of technology and the wine and spirits landscape.