Theodora Lee — known in the wine world as Theo-patra, Queen of the Vineyards — founded Theopolis Vineyards in 2003 while working as a partner and trial lawyer at Littler Mendelson. The name is a combination of her own: Theo from Theodora, polis from the Greek word for city. The estate sits along Highway 128 in the Yorkville Highlands of the Anderson Valley, a rugged, elevated interior wine-growing area in southeastern Mendocino County near the Sonoma border.

The first harvest came in 2006 — and wine critic Robert Parker awarded those inaugural grapes a rating of 94 to 96 points before a single bottle had been released under the Theopolis label. The signature wine is an estate-grown Petite Sirah that has since earned double gold medals and 96 points from Wine Enthusiast. The portfolio has expanded to include Pinot Noir from the Yorkville Highlands and Santa Lucia Highlands, Rosé of Petite Sirah, and the Theo-patra's Cuvée Blanc and Cerise — each named in honor of its founder.

The Yorkville Highlands sits at high elevation in the interior of Mendocino County — warmer than the coastal Anderson Valley but with cool nights and significant diurnal temperature swings that preserve acidity and freshness in the grapes. The estate's Petite Sirah thrives in this rugged, dry terrain, producing wines with deep color, firm structure, and the kind of age-worthiness the variety is known for at its best.

Theopolis sources Pinot Noir from the Cortada Alta Vineyard in the Santa Lucia Highlands — a high-elevation, wind-swept site in Monterey County known for cool conditions and mineral-driven wines — in addition to its Yorkville Highlands estate fruit. Each wine is crafted in small lots with attention to varietal expression and regional character, without heavy-handed intervention.

Theodora Lee is founder, winemaker, visionary, and the public face of Theopolis — a practicing trial attorney who built one of California's most distinctive women-owned wine estates entirely on her own terms. Her dual life in law and wine isn't a contradiction; both, she would argue, require precision, patience, and a willingness to make your case. Theopolis is a BIPOC and women-owned business, and Theodora is an active community builder — hosting events, wine education experiences, and charitable collaborations that bring new audiences to the world of fine wine.