Winemaker Friday! Special Wine Tasting with Steven Kent Winery

Come Join us Tonight for a Special WineMaker Friday Tasting Event!

7 Tastes for $15 of both Steven Kent Winery & La Rochelle Winery! Tasting includes cheese & chocolate

5:30 - 9:00pm 

About Steven Kent Winery:

Steven Kent Mirassou didn't always want a career in wine. He went to school on the East coast, got a Masters in Literature, and was considering the pursuit of a PhD. "The idea of writing the great American novel was very appealing, so I was going to write books and teach literature." Ultimately, though, Steven chose his family's business. It wasn't a matter of family pressure. While he worked at the family winery as a kid each summer, there wasn't really any expectation Steven would take up the family trade. However, after completing his Masters, Steven realized he simply didn't have another three or four years left in him to pursue a doctorate. That's when he meandered towards wine.

Steven Kent Mirassou

Being part of the Mirassou clan certainly made his new endeavor less burdensome. He's part of the 6thgeneration to be involved in the industry, carrying on the family legacy dating all the way back to 1854. "No one seems to leave [the industry]," Steven explains. "My father was well liked when he was working, and still is liked, and that's made it much easier to get in the door with people." Steven learned a great deal about the industry from his dad. In fact, it was alongside his father that the pair set out to establish a new Livermore Valley winery in 1996.

While the Steven Kent Winery has produced some top-quality Cabernets, Steven's other great love in the world of wine is Pinot Noir. The Livermore Valley, however, isn't conducive to growing the varietal. Steven didn't let that stop him. Just a stone's throw away from StevenKent, at La Rochelle, they make all Pinot, all the time. Steven works with some of the finest growers in the West, from acclaimed Pinot producing areas like the Santa Lucia Highlands, the Russian River Valley, and the Santa Cruz Mountains. Being privileged enough to have such great fruit is quite a blessing, but there's plenty of work involved. In a way, Steven and fellow winemaker, Tom Stutz, just might have the world's worst/best job. They are constantly tasting from different barrels and blends of barrels to determine which fruit is going to end up in which bottles. Keeping track of all the barrels and blends requires a lot of yellow note pads, excel spread-sheets, and even an application on Steven's I-phone. When you taste the quality in the different bottles, though, it's easy to understand why they put so much effort into the selection process.