Bob Betz
Bob Betz is owner/winemaker for Betz Family Winery, the latest chapter in his 35 years in the wine world. Following his college degree he and his wife Cathy spent a year in the vineyards of Europe, focusing on the basics of grape growing and winemaking.
After returning to Seattle in the mid 1970s Bob joined Chateau Ste. Michelle. During his nearly three decades there Bob was part of the emergence of Washington winemaking, working with growers and winemakers to make this new viticultural area a reality. At retirement in 2003 Bob was vice-president of winemaking research and managing director of two international joint ventures, Col Solare with the Antinori Family from Tuscany, and Eroica with Dr. Ernst Loosen from the Mosel. Bob also holds the Masters of Wine (MW) degree from the Institute of Masters of Wine in London.
In the mid 1990s Bob and Cathy crushed their first grapes for Betz Family Winery, focused on red varieties from the Columbia Valley. Working with specific vineyards and growers in selected climates and soil sites, Bob began to make compelling Bordeaux and Rhone-variety red wines. By concentrating on defined vineyards and growing strategies, precise cellar protocol and limiting case production, today Betz Family Winery crafts wines that reflect the diligence that a small producer can bring to making fine wine.
