RSS
Home
Roots run deep at Sonoma's Robledo Family Winery
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
Winemaker Reynaldo Robledo salutes family who led the way.
Sonoma winemaker Reynaldo Robledo never forgets his roots and his dream for his family.
“Forty-one years ago, I came to California from Mexico as an immigrant farm worker,” he said. “I worked in the vineyards with the Christian Brothers in Calistoga to help my family back home.”
Through the next three decades, he learned to prune a vine and began to learn more about farming, winemaking and vineyard management. He also realized he had found his passion.
In 1984, he had saved up enough money to purchase his first piece of property in Sonoma County.
“I showed all of my (nine) children how to take care of the vines when they were quite young,” he said looking over the harvested fields of orange and red. “We opened the Robledo Family Winery in 1995 in Sonoma and now we own 300 acres between Napa, Sonoma and Lake County.”
The winery produces gold medal Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Noir, Pinot Grigio, Pinot blanc, Tempranillo, Barbera, Zinfandel, Petite Sirah, Syrah, Merlot, Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Port. He produces 22 varietals ranging in price from $20 to $150.
“Last year, I decided to open a second location with tasting room in Lake County,” he said. “The appellation has a higher elevation and the weather is warmer in the summer and cooler in the winter. The lake breezes are great for the varietals, especially Pinot Noir, we have planted there.”
He harvests his Pinot Noir – which has layers of complexity and softness – grapes from 9 p.m. until 7 a.m. to keep the grapes cooler with less shock during crush and fermentation.
Respect and remembrance of his Mexican heritage is revealed dramatically in the red blend “Los Braceros”. It is dedicated to the Mexican field family: Cabernet Sauvignon represents the father, the Syrah, the mother and the Merlot for the son.
”My grandfather, Luis Robledo, was part of the “Braceros” program in the 1940s,” Robledo said. “During World War II, Mexican men and women left their homeland to work the agricultural fields of California at the invitation of federal authorities and the local growers.”
Their help was essential because the local labor force was sent abroad to defend
America. The hard work that the generation of “Braceros” put into the vines and grapes of this area made possible the consolidation of the wine industry in the Napa and Sonoma valleys.
The Robledo Family Winery is open by appointment daily 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. and Sunday 11 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
