My Story
My name is Dan O’Brien. I am not from California. I don’t own a vineyard or a winery. I did not inherit land nor am I backed by family wealth. I grew up in Rhode Island, shoveling my driveway and helping my neighbor make homemade “Chianti” in his garage. By high school, I was stocking Carlo Rossi at the local package store. During college I spent my nights tending bar and shucking oysters in downtown Providence.
I worked my way up in the hospitality industry, eventually becoming a sommelier at some of Boston’s finest restaurants. From there, I moved to San Francisco, where I opened a luxury hotel and developed the wine program for its Michelin-starred restaurant. My last job before venturing out on my own was running one of the oldest vineyard estates in Napa Valley. Throughout all my experiences, one thing remained constant…
I wanted to make my own wines - worthy of the industry’s respect yet approachable enough for everyone to enjoy.
But before this could happen, I was walking out of my last day of work in Boston when an unexpected phone call changed everything. My mother had suddenly passed away from a rare, undiagnosed disease called amyloidosis. She was 51 years old. Kind, generous, and hardworking, she had supported my unconventional career path when no one else in my family would. Making these wines is my way of celebrating her life.
Today, I live in Sonoma Valley with my wife, Alison, and our reluctant vineyard dog, Alma. Our community is everything — farmers, winemakers, distillers, chefs, restaurateurs, and small business owners — people who live and breathe hospitality. We gather often, and when we do, it’s around my mother’s table; the same table where I grew up doing my homework. Now, we fill it with food, wine, and friends — my quiet way of still having dinner with her.
