History
Since our
first vintage in 1990, we at Röbller Vineyard have experienced many
successes. Our quaint tasting room has become home to an array of awards
from local and national wine competitions.
We are quite
proud of the Best of Show and first ever Governor's Cup Award we received
for our 1991 Norton Reserve.
OUR WINE MAKING HISTORY
We began at our home in Glendale,
Missouri. Each fall family and friends gathered in our backyard to crush the newly harvested grapes and sample the previous year's vintage. Over the years the quality of the wine improved to the point that we decided to establish a winery.
On a sunny December day in 1987, Robert and Lois
Mueller took the kids on a drive in the country. The drive
which led us to New Haven, Missouri, ended at a beautiful piece of property
that showcased the rolling countryside of the region. The property
offered south facing slopes with a full east/west exposure along with great soil
composition and depth for establishing a vineyard. We had found the
perfect location to establish our winery. Over the next several months
we designed the layout of the vineyard and planting began in mid-spring.
This was the beginning of a great new tradition in Missouri's wine community.
During 1989 and 1990 we built the winery and set up the equipment, preparing
for our first crush. Finally everything came together, the grapes
we had contracted for were ripe and the bureau of alchohol, tobacco and firearms
approved the building.
LET THE CRUSH BEGIN
We had chosen several varieties
that we were familiar with, but had no real experience producing. This first
vintage included Vidal, Vignoles, Cynthiana and Chancellor. Our challenge
was to be able to have wines ready and drinkable in the spring for our
planned opening. This caused us to focus on a fermentation style
that would create soft wines, rich with fruit qualities. Based on
everyone's reaction, we achieved that goal.
SINCE THAT TIME
we have been able to hone our
wine making skills and expand into several new varieties. We have maintained our original
approach for producing drinkable young wines.
It appeared that our fermentation style had proven itself worthy, since
our 1991 Norton Reserve received Best of Show honors in the 1993 Missouri State
Wine competition. As it was only our second vintage, we were both blessed and
surprised with the honor.
OVER THE PAST SEVERAL YEARS
Since the original planting, we have expanded grape cultivation to cover 16 acres. The grape varieties include
Vidal, Vignoles,
Seyval, Traminette, Steuben, Villard Noir, St. Vincent, Chambourcin and
Norton. Our experience indicates that we are able to produce between
three and six tons per acre, depending on variety.
WINES FOR SALE
We sell our wines directly from the winery because
we believe it is important that everyone have a
good understanding of our approach while maintaining the personal service
our customers have come to expect and enjoy. As a family, we are
committed to creating a strong niche in the Missouri wine industry
by developing unique approaches to quality wine making with varieties that
are well suited to our climate and growing conditions.
Our wines are also available in other select locations.