Personnel Profiles

The Vineland Estates Winery team tells the story of family, with brothers Allan and Brian Schmidt working alongside each other since 1991. As President and Winemaker respectively, the Schmidts are third generation in the Canadian wine industry.

Along with Jan Willem-Stulp, Restaurant Director and Executive Chef of The Restaurant @ Vineland Estates Winery, the executive team represents many years of service to the winery.  Combined, this team has over forty-five years of experience in the organization.  With consistent personalities at its helm over many years, the winery is well positioned to continue to evolve as it celebrates twenty-five years in the Niagara wine industry.

Allan Schmidt, President, Vineland Estates Winery

Born and raised in the Okanagan Valley of British Columbia, Canada, Allan’s background in the world of grape growing and winemaking has stemmed from a long family connection. In 1980, Allan’s family became co-founders of Sumac Ridge Winery in the Okanagan Valley, and today Allan represents the third generation of his family to be involved in the development of this growing Canadian industry.

After oenological training in California at Heitz Cellars and viticulture training in the Nahe region of Germany, Allan moved to Ontario in 1987 to take up the position of Winemaker and General Manager at Vineland Estates Winery.  The family connection with wine continues to this day.  Today, Allan holds the position of President and works alongside his brother Brian, who is now Vineland Estates’ Winemaker.   In 1993, they dog sledded to the magnetic North Pole with several bottles of Icewine, claiming to be the first winemakers to take Icewine to the North Pole for polarized aging.

Since Allan joined Vineland Estates, it has become the first winery to open an on-site fine dining 4 Diamond Restaurant and Bed and Breakfast Cottage.  Production has grown to 60,000 cases a year of premium wines, and the winery has received hundreds of international wine awards, including the Vinitaly Grand Special trophy as the highest scoring winery in a field of over three thousand wines.

Allan has played a vital role in Vineland Estates Winery’s evolution, and his twenty-year history with the company has seen it develop into “Niagara’s Premiere Wine and Culinary Experience.”

Brian Schmidt, Vice President of Operations and Winemaker, Vineland Estates Winery

Brian Schmidt was born in Kelowna, British Columbia and was raised on a vineyard that had been in the family for three generations.  The Schmidt family was one of the founding families of the Okanagan wine industry and this was the foundation of Brian’s interest in winemaking.

Brian has traveled extensively throughout Europe studying winemaking and the winemaking process.  It is this experience that has resulted in the creation of a winemaking style that has become a Vineland Estates Winery signature.

In 1991, Brian traveled to Ontario to train with his brother Allan, who was the original winemaker at Vineland Estates.  Brian took over this position at the winery in 1994 and ever since his commitment to producing quality products has been evident in the Cellar, where his self-described winemaking style is “minimalist by nature.”

The result is the consistent production of award winning wines that have garnered national and international recognition.  One notable achievement was the awarding of the Vinitaly Grand Special trophy as the highest scoring winery in a field of over three thousand wines.  Brian has been instrumental in building a reputation for the winery as a producer of Ontario’s best Rieslings, in focusing the portfolio of wines on additional signature varietals such as Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc, and in the creation of the iconic Elevation brand of wines.  His continuing legacy is to build Vineland Estates’ reputation for premium wines of outstanding quality.

Jan-Willem Stulp, C.C.C., Restaurant Director and Executive Chef, The Restaurant @ Vineland Estates Winery

Jan-Willem began his career at Vineland Estates Winery in 1996 as assistant to Executive Chef, Mark Picone.  A Niagara Culinary Institute graduate, Jan-Willem successfully completed various courses under Mark’s tutelage while undergoing rigorous training in this notoriously regimented kitchen.  Jan was then promoted to Sous-Chef, and became one of the youngest chefs in Canada to attain the coveted CCC certification.

By 2002, the kitchen was entirely in the hands of Jan-Willem, who was promoted to Chef de Cuisine.  Since early 2005, he has directed the restaurant as a whole in conjunction with the culinary and service teams. Jan-Willem is an active leader in the Niagara culinary scene, leading food demonstrations at LCBO Event Kitchens and the Niagara Wine and Food Classic and appearing on Cogeco Cable Niagara, Buffalo’s Channel 2 and 7, and the Food Network show “I Do... Let’s Eat.”

Under Jan-Willem’s direction, The Restaurant @ Vineland Estates Winery continues to receive accolades.  The restaurant is recommended by Toronto Life and Gourmet magazines as well as the Zagat Dining Guide, and has been featured at the renowned James Beard Foundation in New York City.  The restaurant has also received the CAA/AAA Four Diamond Award, Distinguished Restaurant of North America (DiRoNa) Award, and Eat Smart Award for Healthy Menu Choices.