Steve Rued, a fifth-generation winegrower from Sonoma County’s Dry Creek Valley, began working in his family’s vineyards in 1982. After earning a B.S. in Fermentation Science from U.C. Davis in 1993, he began his winemaking career. He worked at Kenwood from 1994, becoming winemaker in 2000, with a brief stint in South Africa in 1995. From 2003 to 2005, he worked at Valley of the Moon, followed by a decade as director of winemaking at Rutherford Wine Company, where he crafted numerous highly-rated wines. In 2015, Rued returned to his family’s vineyards to focus on their winery, Rued Wines.