Riley Roddick, winemaker and owner, Hubba Wines, Paso Robles, California

With the advent of COVID, Riley Roddick took the plunge to become her own boss after years of assisting luminary winemakers like Stephan Asseo of L’Aventure and Vailia From of Desperada Wine. The move was a long time in coming. A native of San Diego, Riley studied viticulture at Cal Poly University and eventually traveled to France for her master’s degree. Her experiences in Europe over the course of three years shaped her understanding of why wine is so unique among all the products of the world. Here, she discusses what it’s like to be homesick for your car, why she chose names like Mushroomhead and Butch for her wines, and the flavor that French people detest, according to her anecdotal research.

Website: hubbawines.com

Instagram: @hubbawines