Vince D’Adamo: What did you enjoy most about competing in athletics throughout your life?
Ryan Hill: Camaraderie. I started playing team sports in third grade, and learned to set goals and thrive through cooperation, discipline and commitment. In team sports there is the added element of teammates depending on you for participation and performance – which is what happens in the real world.
D’Adamo: What have you been doing since graduating from high school?
Hill: My family started making wine in 2001, and after graduating with a degree in Wine Business Strategies from Sonoma State University, I’ve been spearheading the sales and marketing for our family business. I got married to a wonderful woman from San Diego in 2010, and we had our first child (Landon) in 2011. We had our second child (Charlotte) in 2013, and currently reside in Browns Valley. Our goal is to get back to Yountville, which is where I was raised and spent my childhood.
D’Adamo: What was your favorite class at Vintage High?
Hill: My favorite classes at Vintage High School were English and US History. Mrs. Key, Mr. Anderson and Mr. Tindell taught these classes, and were able to create an entertaining classroom environment, while still challenging the students.
D’Adamo: What was your favorite athletic moment at Vintage High?
Hill: My favorite athletic moment at Vintage High was winning the MEL Championship for Basketball in 2000. It was the first time it had been done since 1977, and hasn’t been done since.
D’Adamo: How much do you feel you have grown personally since graduating from high school and how much of that do you trace to athletics?
Hill: I trace everything back to athletics. Good coaches are like good bosses, and good employees are like good teammates. At Hill Family Estate, we’ve created a culture that reminds me of the teams I played on at Vintage High. On the championship basketball team I played on in 2000, every player knew their role. We weren’t the most athletic team, but we were well-coached, well-conditioned, and believed that we could beat anyone – at any time. That was a common belief shared between 15 guys that all respected each other, and would go to war for one another. If you look at the current employee roster at my family’s winery, a majority of our employees knew very little about wine prior to being hired. However, they knew how to function on a team, multi-task, take accountability, and have respect for their fellow employees and surroundings. Today, we have very little turnover, and one of the best hospitality programs in the Napa Valley.
D’Adamo: Within your family, who have been the most influential people?
Hill: Jennifer Carvalho and Peter Jacobsen have been the most influential people in my life. Both of these individuals believed in me during my childhood, and held the bar extremely high. Jennifer is currently the Recreation Coordinator for the Town of Yountville, and was a second mother for me while growing up. She taught me to swim, coached my sports teams, took me to Scandia, the movie theater, 7-Eleven for slurpee’s after school, etc. She also made sure I did my homework before playing with my friends. Peter Jacobsen is a dentist and lived in San Francisco during the week. He and his wife Gwenny owned a small plot of land that they farmed next door to my home. On the weekends, I would go over to Peter’s house and he would teach me all sorts of things. We planted vegetables, drove a tractor, harvested produce, pruned trees, and sold fruits and vegetables to the local restaurants. While we did these activities, he would ask me all sorts of questions about life, which most adults wouldn’t ask kids – simply because most adults treat kids as kids, and not as an adult. This process evoked a lot of thought, and helped me gain confidence and self-esteem. I wasn’t allowed to answer Peter’s questions with a question mark on the end. I always had to answer with a period, and be confident in the answer I delivered. His motto is work is play, and play is work. This is something I’ve fostered in my life that helps me maintain balance, and allows me to enjoy every moment in everything I do.
D’Adamo: Name a historical figure, dead or alive, in or out of sports you would most like to meet.
Hill: I would like to meet Michael Jordan. He was/is my idol, and a big reason why the No. 23 is so meaningful in my life.
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