Jeff Strekas

Coming Up

Winemaking at House of Mittal in Paso Robles became Jeff Strekas’s 2026 title, and the fit reflects a career built more on technical discipline than on romantic notions of the trade. Originally from Connecticut, he first trained as a chemical engineer, bringing measurement, structure, and problem-solving into a field that often leaves room for instinct. That scientific base stayed central as the work moved toward wine, with Paso Robles serving as the place that pulled the pieces together. Strekas called it “love at first sight,” which, stripped of sentiment, still reads as a clear response to place. Training at University of California, Davis gave Strekas a foundation suited to precision, observation, and experimentation. Before wine became the main lane, he worked as a biochemical engineer doing vaccine research and development, a background that makes the lab-to-cellar transition legible rather than unusual. He also served as assistant winemaker at ONX Wines (from 2013), moving between scientific method and cellar practice in a way that shows how closely those disciplines can align.

Where They Are Now

At ONX Wines, the role of director of winegrowing places vineyard decisions and cellar outcomes in one frame. That breadth matters in wine: it ties farming to production and shows a career path shaped by continuity rather than a clean break from science. In Strekas’s case, the work reads as a translation of an engineering mindset into the slower, more variable demands of winegrowing and winemaking. The 2026 winemaker post at House of Mittal marks the current stage of that progression. Engineer, researcher, assistant winemaker, winegrowing lead, winemaker: the sequence matters, and it shows how technical training can move across sectors without losing its edge. Across those roles, the constant is a methodical approach applied to a craft that asks for both discipline and judgment. At LXV Wine in Paso Robles, the bottle-level record is carried by the 2018 LXV RESERVE NEBBIOLO, the 2020 LXV Sauvignon Blanc, and the 2018 Cabernet Franc. These named wines give a practical outline of the range attached to his work, and they anchor the resume in finished product rather than title alone.

Signature

Jeff's signature wines include 2018 LXV RESERVE NEBBIOLO, 2020 LXV Sauvignon Blanc, 2018 Cabernet Franc, and 2019 the Jewel.

In Their Words “At Merryvale, Graham Wehmeier taught me the basics of winemaking from the ground up, and showed me a clean, refined style of Cabernet.” “I worked as a biochemical engineer doing vaccine research and development.”

Honors

The 2018 LXV RESERVE NEBBIOLO, 2020 LXV Sauvignon Blanc, and 2018 Cabernet Franc provide the clearest bottle-level markers of his craft.