Growing up in Sunnyvale, California, Kurtis lived just outside of wine country in the Bay Area. When he went off to college, he moved even closer to wine country and earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Viticulture and Enology from U.C. Davis. When asked why he wanted to become a winemaker he said, “It is the perfect mix of science and art; wine is something you can create to enjoy with family and friends.”

Kurtis began his career in California wine, working with sparkling wine at Domaine Chandon and Mumm Napa then moved further up valley to Newton Vineyard where he was an Enologist.

Drawn towards the idea of working for a historic winery and vineyard, Kurtis began his career at Robert Mondavi Winery, and in 2017 joined the winemaking team as Assistant Winemaker and in 2018, Senior Winemaker at Robert Mondavi Winery.