Sometimes the stars align perfectly in people’s lives, and simple events can trigger a series of wonderful outcomes. In this case, it’s the birth of an award-winning wine called Roubaix Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon.
It all started in 2002 when Pine Crest residents Carlos and Meredith Wolfe took a birthday celebration trip to France to pursue their love of cycling and travel. While climbing Mount Ventoux, the wolves met a California couple named Brian and Lenny Lewis, and the foursome quickly became friends. and was thinking of buying a vineyard in Napa Valley one day.
In the years that followed, Carlos, a facial plastic surgeon, and Meredith, a fitness expert and triathlete, stayed in touch with Brian and Lenny, enjoying many cycling trips. One day in 2009, Carlos received an email from Brian, in Napa Valley, describing the opportunity to purchase one acre of vineyards and a small yellow cottage. Friends jumped at the chance and soon became the owners of what is now Roubaix’s vineyard in Rutherford, California.
“We decided that if we were going to make wine, we would do it the right way,” says Carlos. “We built a new house where the cottage was, and Meredith and I spent time there with Brian and Lenny, learning the art of winemaking from scratch.”
To make good wine, of course, you must grow and harvest good grapes. In 2009, with the help of a professional winemaker, the couple decided on a particular rootstock to graft his Sauvignon vines to Cabernet. Emerging plants were cared for in greenhouses until they were hardy enough to be planted in Roubaix Vineyards.
The couple patiently waited for the small vines to reach maturity and produce grapes suitable for harvest. It took seven years from the day they planted the first vines to the moment they tasted their new wine, and that first harvest yielded 4,000 pounds of grapes from just one acre.
“Winemaking is more about being a farmer,” Brian says. “Weather and water availability are key factors. An interesting fact is that when the vines are stressed, such as by drought, sugars are concentrated in the grapes, resulting in better wines.”
Roubaix Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon is aged for 24 months in French oak barrels before bottling. In its first year of competition, the 2016 Vintage entered a blind tasting competition sponsored by the Chapman School of Hospitality at Florida International University. Roubaix Vineyards was second out of 600 wines tasted.
The wine was described as full and luxurious, a true expression of the classic Rutherford style with aromas and flavors of dark cherry, raspberry jam and cranberry complemented by mocha, clove, bay leaf and cedar. I’m here. In addition to the flavors of blackberries and blueberries, you can feel the sweet wood spices from barrel aging. Only 75 to 100 cases of Roubaix Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon are produced each year.
Available at the Fontainebleau Hilton Miami Beach in South Florida, The Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Key Biscayne, Fiora and Fogart restaurants in Coral Gables, Captain’s Tavern and Anacapri restaurants in Pine Crest, and Vintage Liquor’s in Pine Crest, Midtown and Brickell. Bottles can also be purchased online. www.roubaixvineyards.com.
“Four of us recently returned to France for a bike trip to celebrate our 20th anniversary.th It’s the anniversary of our friendship,” says Meredith. “That chance meeting on Mount Ventoux many years ago changed our lives. It was a wonderful trip for all of us.”
For more information on Roubaix Vineyards Cabernet Sauvignon, please visit www.roubaix.com. www.roubaixvineyards.com.
about us:
Connect with your customers and grow your business
click here
