Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/701904
64 / the tasting panel / july 2016 In the tasting room, a couple celebrating their 50th wedding anniversary engages Anthony about the merits of different bottle closures—natural, synthetic and screwtop. Upon the revelation that Anthony is the family winemaker, they proceed to solicit wine suggestions and confess their fondness for the winery. Such a familial and welcoming atmosphere tempers any sense of pretense. Riboli eschews the idea that wine should be the purview of an exclusive few: "Wine has become too pretentious, too snobby, and not everyone's going to buy a $1,000 wine." Riboli suggests that the winery's various labels—including Opaque, San Simeon, Windstream and Riboli Family, among others—offer something for customers with a nascent wine interest, whose introduction may be the sweet sparklers of Stella Rosa, as well as for connois- seurs who prefer complex reds from the single-estate vineyards in Napa and Paso Robles. Whatever the preference, Riboli simply hopes their libation of choice is wine. "We've never been biased; a customer's a customer, so give that customer what they want and make them feel good about it." At one point, Riboli pauses briefly in a small gallery teeming with portraits documenting the family's history, where a tour is proceeding. The docent makes notice of the head winemaker in the group's presence and a young lady, compulsive in her excitement, points to the wall and unabashedly declares, "You're famous!" The progeny of sustained success is respect—indis- criminate of age. Riboli blushes slightly and concedes a demure yet appreciative nod, the winemaker's innate sense of balance on display beyond just his wines. Founded in 1917, San Antonio Winery is the oldest producing winery in Los Angeles. San Antonio's estate Stefano Vineyard in Paso Robles. MEET THE WINEMAKER