Conversation with Justin Michelle Ward Trabue of Ward Four Wines
To kick off a new series highlighting the people shaping wine today, I spoke with Justin Michelle Ward Trabue—owner and head wine witch at Ward Four Wines—about what inspired her to start making wine and the many steps (and harvests) that led her there.
Justin’s story moves from a D.C. dining table to the cellars of California and beyond. It’s a story about curiosity, persistence, and finding your own lane in an industry that’s learning to open its doors wider through organizations created to support and uplift BIPOC wine professionals.
LaShea: What’s your full name, pronouns, and where do you call home?
Justin: I’m Justin Michelle Ward Trabue (she/her). I live in Napa and make my wines in Sonoma, but I’m a fourth-generation Washington, D.C. native. D.C. is my forever home.
L: Your current role?
J: I’m the owner and head wine witch of Ward Four Wines. I founded the brand in 2021, made my first wines in 2022 (five barrels, five varieties), and sold out that first year. I am now a fully grant-funded winery and have a biannual wine club that I affectionately call the Spell Craft Society.
L: Take us through your wine journey.
J: Wine started at home. My parents loved it, and D.C.’s restaurants were my first classroom in hospitality. In high school, a black sommelier came to our house and said Wine can take you anywhere. After graduation, my dad and I drove cross-country to San Luis Obispo so I could study the wine business at Cal Poly.
I learned production by doing: a season living on an organic apple orchard/pumpkin patch, then study abroad in Australia (classroom during the week; Barossa, Adelaide Hills, and McLaren Vale on Fridays during harvest). Back in California, I interned at Lumen Wines and stayed five years, rising to assistant winemaker. In 2019, I worked a New Zealand harvest; later, I moved north to the Napa/Sonoma area to deepen the technical side in a lab role at a Napa winery. Those logistics now power Ward Four.
In 2022, before my first vintage, I went to South Africa to work a harvest at Almenkerk Wine Estate in Elgin with an all-Black cellar, vineyard, and hospitality team which was a powerful experience that affirmed the kind of community I want to build.
L: What is the wine or region that changed everything?
J: Santa Barbara County Pinot Noir is my first love. A recent Becky Wasserman & Co. scholarship took me to Burgundy for a week, which only deepened it. My mentor Lane Tanner (first woman winemaker in Santa Barbara) shaped my palate: intentional, earlier picks, wines that are lighter in frame but full of flavor and balance.
L: Your most memorable wine moment so far?
J: 2019 in New Orleans at Radical Exchange: Resistance Served, organized by Ashtin Berry. It connected wine/spirits with hospitality’s history—tipping culture, labor, self-worth—and it was my first time building community in wine that looked like me and had shared similar experiences. I left reinvigorated and gained lifelong friends.
There are so many amazing organizations, including the 280 Project, The Version Project, Black Wine Professionals, Asian Wine Professionals, Co Fermented, The Vinguard—and it’s beautiful to watch.
“Being social doesn’t mean I can’t get down-and-dirty in the cellar”
L: How do you stay inspired?
J: Ward Four is personal. Every wine is inspired by a family member and paired with a movie/TV show/song. People see themselves in those references; it sparks conversation and community.
L: How has your relationship with wine evolved?
J: I was often told I “belonged” in hospitality—not production. So I built my own lane. I haul my fruit, harvest, manage ferments, rack, bottle, hand-label—the whole thing. Ward Four is my love letter to wine and proof that being social and community-oriented doesn’t preclude getting down-and-dirty in the cellar.
L: What’s exciting you in wine right now?
J: Intentionality and visibility—especially around vineyard stewards: working conditions, pay, safety. These conversations weren’t happening at this volume 5–10 years ago. They matter.
L: Best piece of advice you’ve received?
J: If you work for someone, ask how you can grow. If there’s no path there, ask them to connect you elsewhere. Smaller wineries may not pay like the big groups, but they can still champion you. Be honest about your needs—it opens doors.
L: Leave us with a recommendation—wine, culture, anything.
J: I’m deep in White Lotus (Season 3) and Yellowjackets. Enfield Wines just dropped a winter release I snagged and can’t wait to open. Movie-wise, Heart Eyes gave me blissful throwback slasher vibes (think early-2000s Valentine), and Blink Twice was a wild ride.
Also: long live funny horror!
Follow Ward Four Wines: Instagram Website
This Week’s Tiny Pleasures, Vol. 4- Justin Inspired
A few things that kept me from becoming completely cynical
Ward Four Muscat Blanc (Cecchini Ranch, Contra Costa, California) — Grown on old clay loam soils at Cecchini Ranch, where the vines have been farmed organically and thoughtfully for years, this dry, skin-contact Muscat feels like sunshine caught in a glass. It smells of white tea and honeysuckle, and tastes of citus pith and white peach, bright and textured.
Justin introduced me to the Country Life Vlog when I visited her over the summer. As we tasted through her wines, the videos played softly in the background. Set in the Caucasus Mountains of Azerbaijan, each episode follows the matriarch of the Ramikhanov family as she cooks or harvests on a beautifully grand scale. All the sound is ambient—the wind in the trees, the occasional animal noise, the rhythm of whatever tool she’s using. She’s often visited by bunnies and a crow who seems to know she’ll share a few bites—it’s all very Snow White. Eventually, the whole family, including their dog and her husband (who’s usually busy with his own big project), comes together around the table. The videos are both soothing and genuinely exciting to watch. I’d recommend starting with Village Strawberry Cake & Homemade Strawberry Pastila Recipe and just letting smooth brain take over.
Heart Eyes was another recommendation from Justin, and it was fantastic. Like her, I’m a big fan of horror-comedy, and this one hits the sweet spot. I know Halloween has passed, but it would also make great Valentine’s Day viewing. The premise: a killer who preys on couples every year on February 14th, and two strangers whose instant chemistry puts them in his sights. It’s fun, campy, and within the first scene, I completely understood why a winemaker might have recommended it.
