Kevin Holt, Winemaker

As only the second winemaker in MacRostie’s 20-year history, and the handpicked successor to founding winemaker Steve MacRostie, Kevin Holt continues the winery’s tradition of crafting exceptional wines from Carneros and Sonoma Coast fruit. A gifted, instinctive winemaker, Kevin approaches his craft as an artisan, working with the natural shape and character of the grapes to create wines that authentically reflect a rich and compelling sense of place.

A native of California, Kevin studied law in Austin, Texas. During law school, a job in a local wine shop changed his life, inspiring a love of wine and a new professional direction. Kevin embarked on a 10-year career in fine wine sales and marketing that carried him around the country, while exposing him to the great diversity of world-class wines. During this same period, Kevin first met Steve MacRostie, and the two struck up a professional friendship. A student of wine, Kevin next went on to study viticulture and enology as a graduate student at University of California, Davis.

In 1998, Kevin joined Testarossa Vineyards in Los Gatos as assistant winemaker, where he gained invaluable experience working with the winery’s portfolio of Pinot Noir and Chardonnay.“Pinot and Chardonnay are my first loves as a winemaker,” says Kevin. “When you are working with great vineyards, both varieties possess this amazing potential to be exceptional and distinctive; they literally speak of the earth.” Following his time at Testarossa, Kevin spent four years at Quivira Vineyards in Healdsburg, where he was promoted from assistant to associate winemaker. During this period Kevin honed his skills, developing a natural ability (based in part on years of wine tasting) for envisioning the final product during the blending process. In keeping with his desire to work with Carneros fruit, Kevin next joined the winemaking team at Artesa.

In June of 2004, after an extensive search, founding winemaker Steve MacRostie personally selected Kevin to take on the winemaking responsibilities at MacRostie Winery and Vineyards.“As winemakers, there’s a connection between us. We both have an obsession for making Chardonnay and Pinot Noir, and we both love Carneros and Sonoma Coast fruit. Just as important, we have a shared vision about winemaking, and a shared philosophy about quality. As a result, there’s a level of trust between us that has made for a seamless transition.”

Building on the traditions established by Steve, Kevin is thrilled to be working with MacRostie’s family of growers, and with fruit from the winery’s beautifully maturing Wildcat Mountain Vineyard. “As a winemaker, I enjoy the best of both worlds. Having this array of outstanding fruit gives me a wonderful range of flavors to work with. At the same time, it helps us ensure consistency and quality from vintage to vintage.”