Ellie Anest, co-founder and CEO of Napa's Eleven Eleven Wines, grew up on a farm in small-town Nebraska.

The descendant of Greek immigrants, Anest was a little girl with big dreams. She recalls cutting images out of magazines and pasting them into a visionary scrapbook. “I created pictures of what life could look like outside of this small town—a world where there’s diversity and opportunity and art and interesting people.”

One has to wonder if any of those photos included a vineyard.

Anest's penchant for imagining led her from Nebraska to San Diego, where she studied sociology and accounting and met Eleven Eleven co-founder Carol Vassiliadis. “That dreaming—the ability to have possibilities—came a lot from [my mother],” Anest says. She left her home in Greece at age 18 to seek opportunities in North America.

Ellie Anest attributes her success as a CEO to the versatility she learned growing up.(Courtesy of Eleven Eleven)

Throughout her career, Anest has "always had a bit of a side hustle,” she admits. (Even as a child, she was involved in everything from swing choir to Future Farmers of America.). When Anest was working as a business and financial consultant, she and Vassiliadis discovered a real estate opportunity in Napa. They invested in that first property, a vineyard with 3.5 acres of vines, with the vision of acquiring a small portfolio.

“I literally fell into this,” Anest says. “We bought the house and that year we had to figure out what to do with those grapes.” As luck would have it, Anest connected with local winemaker Kirk Venge who turned their first harvest into an incredible pinot noir. “Before I knew it, I was in the wine business,” says Anest. “It was that fast.”

That kismet is one reason Anest selected "Eleven Eleven" as the name for the business. Many people consider 11:11 to be a meaningful number and a serendipitous time for wish-making. “When I first read about the concept, I said ‘Oh my gosh, this is everything!’” It brought her back to those childhood days of magazine clipping and scrapbooking.

Though winemaking wasn’t exactly what Anest initially had in mind, she didn’t let that stop her from stepping into the opportunity—despite being confronted with skepticism when she first entered the industry.

“People were questioning, ‘Why do you know what you’re doing?’ And the truth is I didn’t, but I knew I could figure it out.”

After purchasing the initial property (which can be rented through the winery), Anest and Vassiliadis went on to buy the 16 acres of vines that make up Destin Vineyard and the 12-acre estate where they built the Eleven Eleven tasting room.

The Eleven Eleven tasting room is surrounded by 12 acres of vines.(Courtesy of Eleven Eleven)

The journey from investor to CEO has required Anest to take on many roles, from hospitality director to interior decorator. “On any given day I’m wearing different hats,” she says.

Being adaptable and versatile are skills that Anest attributes to her small-town upbringing. “I can jump in and out of things fairly quickly, and sometimes I take it a little bit for granted,” she says. “I feel like it’s my superpower.

Versatility is reflected in Eleven Eleven’s portfolio of wines, too, which includes a fruit-forward rosé of syrah, a fascinating tropical fruit sauvignon blanc, and a clean, crisp riesling—as well as a sultry pinot noir, three cabernets, and a late-harvest zinfandel.

Which is her favorite? “I know this sounds corny, but it’s like saying who’s your favorite kid?” She notes that each wine is uniquely beautiful. “It really depends on who I’m with and what I’m doing.”

Selecting the right wine to meet the occasion is just one aspect of Eleven Eleven’s “make your moment” tagline. But for Anest, it isn’t just about the wine. “The wine is a vehicle to bring people together,” she says. “It has to be more about the magic of what it does when it brings people together. I’d like to build on that here at the winery.”

Early efforts in this area include a series of wellness experiences that engage the senses, spark connections, and celebrate “the art of living well.” Held the first Thursday of the month, these events feature guest speakers on various wellness topics paired with small bites and wine. Eleven Eleven also hosts winemaker dinners, release parties, and, of course, tastings.

Reflecting on “that little girl in Nebraska growing up and looking ahead and wishing for something more, something different," Anest believes anyone has the power to make a similar wish. “You have to focus your energy where you want things to happen,” she says. “Make a wish and make your moment.”

// 620 Trancas St. (Napa), elevenelevenwines.com