Where are you from/where did you grow up? How did you end up in Temecula?
I grew up in south Orange County, in the El Toro / Mission Viejo area. When I graduated college the winery was just re-opening, so I took a corporate job in Irvine and I would commute to Temecula every weekend to help sell wine. Eventually I got tired of sleeping on the couch at the winery on the weekends, so I bought a house in Murrieta and commuted to Orange County until my father asked me to join him full time.
What is your favorite part of the wine making process? Harvest, bottling, etc.?
That’s a tough question because I enjoy every aspect of it. Harvest is a flat out grind but its very rewarding to see your entire year’s worth of effort culminate into a beautiful crop. Bottling is very stressful. The lead up to bottling is very tedious and one has to really trust your palate as you assemble the wines. The tasting and blending part of bottling prep is definitely a highlight of that process. Overall though, I love it all.
Describe working in the wine industry and what you do at Doffo Winery?
The wine industry is an incredible industry. I think of it as “artistry meets farming meets hospitality retail.” Those elements are especially in play for us winemakers here Temecula. At the winery I am involved with the farming, winemaking and front of the house operations. My dad left some pretty big shoes to fill!
When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?
When I was little I always said I would go to Cal Poly Pomona, study engineering, and design race cars. I was on track when I got into Cal Poly, but I took my first high level math class and shortly thereafter realized that business suits me better!
Pair you favorite meal with your favorite Doffo wine:
If I’ve ever poured wine for you in the tasting room, I make it very clear that my favorite meal is a seared bone-in ribeye, garlic roasted mashed potatoes, mixed green salad and a bottle of Syrah, preferably a few years old.
If you did not work with wine, what would you be doing instead?
I would probably be in some type of international corporate sales job. I love to travel and that is what I was on my way to doing before I made the leap of faith to join the family business.
What do you enjoy doing on your days off?
Days off?? I try my hardest to take Sundays off with my wife and kids. The boys are learning to ride and we’ve set up a little track at home, so I have a lot of fun with them learning to ride on 2 wheels!
Pick a person, dead or alive, to share a bottle of wine with. Why that person?
I would have to say Valentino Rossi. He is not only a world class athlete, but he is also a larger than life personality. The fact that he is still alive and that we have some MotoGP connections makes me hopeful that it could happen one day!
