Hello friends and fellow wine lovers!

Our story begins...

...with an unlikely pairing of a boy and a girl from different backgrounds, educational degrees, and even generations,

who met at a winery, started their journey as colleagues, then became friends, fell hopelessly in love (in their uniquely round-a-bout way),

and blended into their own version of a perfectly imperfect (often goofy) and totally modern family.

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Nearly twenty years after that fateful meeting, we found ourselves embarking upon something both old and new...

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On the drive home from a summer road trip up and back down through Washington and Oregon for Ted's Seattle To Portland (STP) bike ride, a saddle-weary Ted, a sleepy kiddo (our eldest, then 2), and a pregnant [and very queasy] Dana were coming over the hill into California when Mt. Shasta rose up into the skyline. It was in the wee hours of the morning at daybreak and, surprisingly, not a single other car on the road.  Quiet and still, save for the humming of the engine, it felt like the gift of that majestic beauty and solitude was ours and ours alone. It was in that moment when Solo Nostro ("Ours Alone") also came into view....because everything sounds better in Italian, right?!?  

I only speak the food & wine Italian that I picked up during my days on the international wine circuit and in the food that I love to cook. However, Ted has a storied and longstanding family legacy of Italian American cultural and winegrowing/winemaking heritage. We had been mulling over the possibility of birthing our own quaint family wine brand, so this serendipitous moment was not lost on either of us.

It is exceedingly difficult to find a unique brand name that isn't already taken. It is even more challenging to find a name that also holds significance and purpose beyond the "name." Solo Nostro was not only something we stumbled upon by happenstance, but also a poignant and fitting bridge to get us from where he had been to the here and now.  It felt like the next chapter in our not-quite-fairytale story was unfolding before our eyes.       

With a dream and some serious determination, we then set out upon what has turned out to be one of our greatest adventures yet.  This is not just our livelihood, but also an integral part of our family lifeblood, our joy, and one of our reasons for waking up each morning ready to hit the ground running/skipping/dancing/biking.  -D.S.

Come along for the ride!