BOB CABRAL

Collaboration and Innovation

Bob Cabral has the same passion for people as he does for wine. He has an affinity for building strong relationships, whether with the stave mill owners in France, the newbie winemakers he mentors in California or the master coopers building his barrels. He believes collaboration leads to better wines and better times. “I want to have the same relationship with the people who manage the wood supply and build the barrels as I do with those who manage the vineyards because I learned early on that you can’t do all things by yourself and that it’s the people you surround yourself with who determine your path for success.” So Bob gets his hands dirty growing the grapes, choosing the wood for his barrels, overseeing his barrel toasting and blending his wines. Through the Tonnellerie Ô Master Cooper Series, which he helped to envision, as well as his close relationship with Tonnellerie Ô’s Master Cooper Quinn Roberts, Bob has been able to better understand what distinguishes a quality barrel. “Until I experienced the harvesting of trees, the craftspeople grading the staves by size, length and grain, then building the flowers and toasting them, I didn’t realize how many variables need to be managed in making a barrel. Like vintage variation, there is barrel variation, and you need an experienced master cooper to eliminate those variables for consistency season over season.”  He is grateful to Tonnellerie Ô for helping him gain a hands-on education and a deep appreciation for the barrel. “Our collaboration has offered me the rare opportunity to make barrels no one else can by controlling the entire process from the ground to the wine.”