Fourth Generation Winemaker Steve Tonella hand crafts small lot wines and shares cult cab tastings in Rutherford Napa Valley.
From an early age Steve worked in the vineyards with his father and grandfather. He was taught to sucker the vines by removing unwanted shoots then tied, trained and irrigated all by hand. Those early years taught him the value of being hands on at every step.
Steve also shares, “I am amazed to have survived my time in the vineyards then as the mode of transportation was the 3-wheeler motorcycles“.
Fast forward to the turn of the century when Steve began making wine and produced small lots of Cabernet Sauvignon. College took him to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo where he earned a degree in Business Administration. After college, Steve entered the high-tech industry and quickly moved into sales leadership positions that took him around the world. Fluent in Italian and Spanish, he has lived and worked in Rome, Italy, and Barcelona, Spain, as well as short stints in England and Japan.
During all of Steve’s travels, the dream of making wine from his family vineyard in Rutherford Napa Valley never left. After working across three continents, the time had come for Steve to make his dream a reality as he now carries on his family legacy as winemaker at S.R. Tonella Cellars. 2010 marked the first release of Steve’s S.R. Tonella Cellars wines. Since that time he has been recognized by Decanter Magazine, Robb Report, and Wine Spectator among other notable news outlets for crafting some of the best Cabernet Sauvignon from the Rutherford AVA of Napa Valley.
Today, Steve manages the family vineyard and wine business with the help of his wife Ariadna. He serves as Past President of the Rutherford Dust Society and hosts private tastings where a piece of our history is shared in every glass. Long-standing members meetup with Steve at events including Premier Napa Valley as he been been an avid supporter for years.