The road may be long and winding, but at the end is where Aonair’s story begins.
The name Aonair (pronounced ā-ō-nair)—Gaelic for “individual”—reflects owners Grant and Megan Long’s shared Irish heritage and the humble beginnings of their wines.
Aonair’s story is deeply personal and steeped in heritage. The name itself reflects that in the early years—beginning with the inaugural 2008 vintage—Grant was the driving force behind every aspect of the winery, from crafting each wine in the cellar to personally meeting every supporter along the way.
The crest adorning the bottle is a tribute to Grant’s roots—the emblem of his maternal Irish ancestors, the Hannigan Clan. Though Grant is a first-generation vintner, the crest nods proudly to his Irish lineage. The martlet birds featured on the crest symbolize new generations flourishing in America.
Megan also brings a rich Irish heritage to the partnership—her father’s family hails from the Flood and O’Brien Clans. Together, they honor their shared ancestry with great pride, weaving a story of family, tradition, and continuity into every bottle of Aonair.
Deeply inspired by Napa Valley’s early heritage, our wines are available exclusively to guests who visit our estate—they are not offered anywhere else in the country.
Though the winery itself wasn’t purchased until 2015, Grant Long Jr.’s journey with wine began much earlier—an earnest teenage experiment in his parents’ garage. At eighteen, he carefully crafted his first small barrel of homemade wine. Friends and neighbors returned for more, sparking a passion that has endured for decades. Even today, Grant occasionally uncorks those early vintages, sharing them with friends and family—reminders of where it all began.
In his early twenties, Grant further immersed himself in Napa’s wine world, working at respected wineries and absorbing both cellar craft and business acumen over years of mentorship. Inspired by his father’s stories of Napa in the 1980s—and its gritty, pioneering spirit—he shaped a philosophy rooted in hospitality, authenticity, and the belief that wine is best experienced in person, amid the vines.
Today, Grant works alongside a small, passionate winemaking team, carrying forward the vision of Aonair—not as a solo pursuit but as a deeply rooted family endeavor.
In 2015, Grant and Megan purchased the property at the base of Howell Mountain—an estate that would become the home of Aonair Winery & Caves. What began as a dream of Grant’s has since grown into a lasting family legacy.
Although Grant has always called Napa home, his wife Megan was born and raised in Wisconsin, where their paths first crossed in 2006. A wine business trip brought Grant to Milwaukee, and a spontaneous invitation to a lake party marked the beginning of their love story. Bonfires, fishing, music—the magic of a Midwestern summer weekend by the lake sparked something special.
After three years of long distance, Megan made the life-changing decision to leave her career as an inner-city teacher and move to Napa in 2009, where she continued teaching while they built a life together. Grant and Megan were married in 2013, and the following year they welcomed their son Tristan.
By then, the dream of starting a small family winery had already begun to take shape. When they discovered the Conn Valley estate, it was love at first sight. The rustic pines, rolling hills, mountain backdrop, and the shimmer of Lake Hennessey—it all simply felt like home.
In 2015 they purchased the estate, and Megan stepped away from her teaching career to join Grant in building their winery dream. Just a year later, their daughter Adelaide was born, completing their family and deepening the roots of their shared journey.
And so—two kids, three dogs, and perhaps a touch of naïve optimism later—the story of their family winery began, rooted in love, shaped by adventure, and deeply connected to the land they now call home.
They’ve built something timeless ~ rooted in family, tradition, and honor to the pioneers who shaped Napa Valley before them.
