Winery STEF — A wine journey through meaningful vineyards, people and places

Why Winery STEF exists

Wine becomes more meaningful when you know the people and places behind it.

I don't own vineyards. I look for them. Old vines that families refused to pull out. Growers who farm the way their parents did. Places that change the way you see wine.

Winery STEF is how I share them with you: small batches, made with the people who grew the grapes, and the story of every bottle told honestly.

— Steph

Every vineyard has a story.

I choose places for their history and for the people who keep them alive, not only for the fruit.

Wine is ultimately about people.

The growers are the real story. My job is to make wine with them, and to introduce you.

Authenticity matters more than perfection.

I tell each story as it happened, the good chapters and the hard ones.

Vineyard stories

Two places I'll never forget

Old head-trained Zinfandel vines at Buchignani Vineyards in early spring

Dry Creek Valley · Sonoma County

The Buchignani vineyard

The Buchignani family planted these Zinfandel vines 135 years ago, and they still farm them today. The vines have survived generations of change because one family chose to protect them.

The Zinfandel story →

Sonoma Valley

Seven wines, one patient blend

In 2018 I tasted seven wines that had already spent two years in barrel, blended them by taste, and gave them three more years to become one. Some wines can't be rushed.

The Assemblage story →

This season

What I'll open this November

For Thanksgiving, the Assemblage 2016 goes on the table with the meal: seven Sonoma Valley wines, blended to be shared.

After dinner, instead of a dessert wine, the Old Vines Zinfandel 2018. And Wednesday, November 18, is National Zinfandel Day: a good excuse to open it a week early.

— Steph

Assemblage 2016 photographed by @amateur_sommelier_

What others say

“This blend creates a complex, warm, and boldly fruity experience that really does leave you wanting more after that last drop.”

— @amateur_sommelier_ on Instagram, about the Assemblage 2016

Gold · Assemblage 2016 · North Coast Wine Challenge 2024
Silver · Old Vines Zinfandel 2018 · North Coast Wine Challenge 2024
“Sensational” · Old Vines Zinfandel 2018 · The Wine Corner, The Year’s Best Zinfandels 2024

The wines

Each bottle is the proof of a story.

Sonoma Valley · California

Assemblage 2016

Seven wines blended by taste, then five years in barrel.

Gold · North Coast Wine Challenge 2024

In France we call it assemblage: the art of blending different grapes and places into something more complete than any of them alone. It's one of the oldest ideas in French winemaking.

Discover the rest of the story →

Dry Creek Valley · Sonoma County

Old Vines Zinfandel 2018

Old vines planted by the Buchignani family 135 years ago.

Silver · North Coast Wine Challenge 2024

In 1995 I walked into ZinEx in San Francisco and fell in love with Zinfandel: the energy of the winemakers, the taste of place in every glass. I promised myself that one day I would make my own.