Our Story
Pretext
Our story started when I, Houman had to leave Iran and move to Turkey at age 14 due to ongoing endless Iran-Iraq war. After completing my high school and starting medical school, I found the love of my life, Nedret and our destiny brought us to the land of opportunity, United States. After medical training in New York City for a few years followed by New Orleans, we decided to migrate further west to sunny Southern California in pursue of perfect climate to raise our children. (2008)
First Act: Dahi Family Vineyard (2015)
Our adventure in growing grapes and later winemaking started in 2014 when my dad expressed interest in a family farming project for retirement and I also was looking to find a get away from intense working hospital environment. I remember around the same time, I happened to listen to a program in local radio talking about evolution of new hidden wine country in backyard of San Diego. Bill Schweitzer, one of the founders of Ramona Valley Wine Country, was speaking about how a landscaping project led planting grapes to replace water thirsty avocado groves and birth of a new American Viticulture Area. After visiting few vineyards and wineries in the area, it became clear to us that we want to own a piece of this paradise. We eventually purchased a burned avocado grove, just off the Highland Valley Road which conveniently happen to be few steps away from Bill Scweitzier’s Vineyard. With our neighbor Bill’s kind guidance and with the help of our friend Micole Moore, who is owner of Ramona Ranch and Vineyard, we rehabilitated our land by removing all the burned stumps, planted Sangiovese and Syrah vines that have been well adjusted to Southern California climate. Over next few years, we expanded further and added Petite Sirah and planted a total of 2200 vines.
Second Act: Winemaking! (2017)
Third Act: Winery (2020)
Our Team
Andrew Wisniewski (Winemaker)
Born and raised in Upstate New York. His interest in wine developed early as his mother managed a fine wine shop, in which he loved spending time wandering up and down the isles, fascinated by the labels from around the world. During his studies in Biochemistry/Microbiology, he had an internship at a local winery in Central Florida that changed his career trajectory and ignited his passion for winemaking. Since then, he has worked in Australia, New Zealand, Oregon (where he obtained his degree in Enology and Viticulture and spent 5 years as a Cellar Master in the Dundee Hills of the Willamette Valley). Prior to his move to San Diego, he was winemaker for 7 years in Washington State where he garnered acclaim earning 50, 90+ scores from major wine periodicals culminating to being named In Wine & Spirits Top 100 wineries in the World for 2019. He is excited to bring his wealth of knowledge and experience to help this exciting region of San Diego County.
Our Team
Joaquin Sanz (Hospitality Manager)
Born Joaquin Sanz in the city of Zaragoza, Spain, home to the grapes ¨Cariñena¨ and the most widely produced red wine of Spain, “Garnacha,” “Joaco,” as he is known affectionately, was immersed in wine from the moment of his birth. After graduating as Juris Doctor in the university, he started a position as Sales & Marketing Director in a new winery. From then to now, his career has been related to the Wine Industry from different perspectives: managing wineries, producing TV and radio shows, writing about wine and gastronomy, and teaching for ten years in various sommelier programs.
In 2015 Joaco moved to San Diego, CA, with his wife and two sons. Joaco’s expertise in Wine Industry, DTC, and digital marketing qualified him to lead the Hospitality, Tasting Rooms, and Wine Clubs for wineries in Ramona and Temecula Wine Country.
Our Team
Houman Dahi, MD (Farmer, Assistant Winemaker, Owner)
And everything else…! When I took on the task of planting a vineyard, I thought that this would be a great future retirement project and would help me get over my physical and mental stress of working long hours as intensive care physician. It did not take me too long to realize all the hard work that goes into farming and wine making. However, the physical exhaustion related to farming has not stopped me from enjoying this experience, and I have learned to appreciate the harmony of nature. I have come to know that premium wine can only be produced from exceptional grape which can be achieved by dedication to hard work in vineyard.
Our Team
Abby Schmidt (Tasting Room Staff)
Born in San Diego, in Clairemont area. Abby’s family moved to beautiful Ramona when she was seven years old. Abby loved growing up in Ramona and is still a resident today with her husband. She’s always enjoyed the small-town vibes. Abby started off her experience in the beer and wine industry in 2018 working at Ballast Point Brewery in Miramar. During that time, she was also hired at Milagro Winery where she worked in the tasting room for a little over a year. She had to take a break from industry during Covid panedemic, but excited to be back serving wine at Sky Valley Cellars. She has also enjoyed working behind the scenes helping with the harvest and pressing the wine. She looks forward in growing her knowledge of wine making. She hopes to see you in the tasting room soon.
Cheers!