Matt Michael Growing up in an Italian-American family in Marin County, Matt was accustomed to wine as an important part of everyday life. His paternal great-grandfather and maternal grandfather emigrated from Italy and began making wine at home to share with family and friends—a tradition Matt cherished and wished to continue. He attended the University of California, Davis where he graduated in 2000 with a BS in Fermentation Science with an emphasis on Viticulture and Enology.
Equipped with a world-class education, Matt spent several years working harvests in Oregon, New Zealand and California. After interning at wineries with vastly different winemaking styles, varietal specialties, production levels and climates, Matt decided to return to Northern California. He joined Quivira Vineyards in Dry Creek Valley as an Enologist and became their Assistant Winemaker after two years. During this time, he helped transition the winery from organic to Biodynamic farming on their 90 acres of estate vineyards, as well as help switch the winery to 100% solar power. Known for Zinfandel and Rhone varietals, Quivira whet Matt’s appetite for rich, textured Rhone-style wines. He soon started his own small label, Baldassari Family Wines, which produces very small-lot Syrahs sourced from little-known vineyards throughout the North Coast appellation. To this day, he continues to manage all aspects of the label, from winemaking to sales. Matt joined Sebastiani Vineyards & Winery in 2005 as the Assistant Winemaker, where he led the production of the Zinfandel, Barbera and Syrah programs as well as looking over the laboratory, bottling and quality assurance.
Matt joined Wattle Creek in September of 2009. He recognized in Wattle Creek the intersection of fantastic vineyards and the opportunity to create a production facility true to his vision.
Matt currently resides in Santa Rosa on the edge of the Russian River Valley. When escaping from the world of wine, he enjoys mountain biking at Annadel State Park, fishing on the Russian River, eating at all the great restaurants’ in Sonoma and slowly (but surely!) fixing up his house.
