Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/1025306
70 / the tasting panel / september 2018 COVER STORY A True Partner Now 95 years old, Maddalena has long possessed a strong work ethic and savvy business acumen—both of which have proved integral to San Antonio Winery's sustained success in an ever- evolving industry. After Maddalena's family immigrated from Italy's Barolo region when she was 7, they settled in the Guasti com- munity near Ontario, California, where they worked as sharecroppers. Years later, a mutual friend invited Stefano to come and meet Maddalena, and when he arrived, she was out driving a trac- tor in the field. He waited 30 minutes for her to approach—time he knew even then was well-spent. "In that half hour, I already made up my mind," Stefano recalls. "If she could drive a tractor, she could run a winery, too." Maddalena, on the other hand, was not so easily convinced. "He was in a car with a raccoon tail on his antenna and was too much of a city slicker for me," she quips. "However, I agreed to meet with him, and I realized he was a good man. I could also tell he was a hard worker." They were married within the year, and Maddalena immediately went to work at the winery, where she oversaw the finances and handled bookkeeping. Cambianica, however, hardly wel- comed her with open arms: Despite her skills, she had to prove herself again and again to earn his trust and respect. She demonstrated she was more than capable nonetheless, and after Cambianica died in 1956, the couple inherited the winery. Anthony attributes much of the family business' success to his grandmother's ingenuity. "She was the one who would say, 'Hey, here's an idea I have,' and I think my grandfather was smart enough to go along with it," he adds. For one, Maddalena believed it was essential to sell directly to consumers. With her guidance, the Riboli family opened one of the state's first winery tasting rooms; by 1965, they'd expanded to 12 locations throughout southern California, two of which are still in opera- tion. "Our customers were all locals living in the neighborhood," Maddalena says. "We were very much like a convenience store today. Cigars, cigarettes, spirits, beer, wine—we sold it all." As the company's informal CFO, Maddalena also served as the point person for inspectors from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms, and Explosives (BATF). Anthony recalls his grandmother once describing a BATF agent as being "taken aback" that she was the person he was there to meet, even with her being the documented co-owner of the business. "Some people did treat me differently from my husband at first. However, I made a conscious effort to show them my competence," Maddalena says. "Occasionally I was treated unfairly, but I always thought of what was best for the company and its survival." Expanding the Business At San Antonio Winery's downtown tasting room, Maddalena was known to prepare sandwiches for customers to enjoy with their wine. This gesture of appreciation eventually spawned a small deli, where customers lined up outside the door. "She's an amazing cook and has an incredible talent," Anthony says. This side business proved particularly prudent when the City of Los Angeles restricted the processing of grapes in the late 1960s, prompting Maddalena to expand the deli into a full-scale restaurant in 1972. Today, San Antonio Maddalena and Stefano Riboli on their wedding day in 1946.