WINEMAKER/CONSULTANT: ROBERT L. PEPI

Bob Pepi’s dad bought land in Napa Valley in the mid-1960s and started growing grapes there just around the time that Bob himself was starting college.  While Bob’s first love was animals and his major Zoology, it wasn’t too many years before the lure of the vine took hold and Bob took courses at both the University of California’s famed Enology program in Davis, and at The Wine Lab in St. Helena.

In 1980, his dad and he started a winery on the Oakville property, which had grown to over 70 acres of some of the best vineyards in Napa Valley.  For over ten years as winemaker and general manager of Robert Pepi Wines, Bob’s wines were best-sellers and consistent 90+ ratings-grabbers.  While best know for the winery’s popular Sauvignon Blanc and Sangiovese wines, it was with his first Cabernet Sauvignon that Bob received a “Cellar Selection” designation from the Wine Spectator.

In 1991, Bob became general manager for the California operations of Stimson Lane, again producing award-winning wines, including a Cabernet-based Conn Creekwine that received the highest Wine Spectator ratings of any Stimson Lane label to that time.   

His family sold the Robert Pepi label and winery to Kendall-Jackson in 1994, leaving Bob free to take his considerable winemaking knowledge around the world as a prized consultant.  With over 60 harvests under his belt, and considerable wine business background and acumen, Bob has a combination of skills and expertise that have made him a valuable asset.  In addition to California labels such as Samuel Charles and Two Angels, 90+ rated wines with grapes from the highest vineyards in CA, Bob also lent his talents for over 15 years to Bodega Valentin Bianchi in Mendoza, Argentina.  When that relationship ended in 2017, Bob began working in Chile as a consultant for the TerraPura line of  “region-specific” varietals from some of the best-known wine-growing areas of the country.