Cary Gott

Co-Head Winemaker

The fourth generation in a family of California winemakers, Cary started his career at the historic Inglenook Winery after studying enology and viticulture at UC Davis. At the age of 23, he founded Montevina, in Amador County’s Sierra Foothills, and soon afterward started up Corbett Canyon winery in San Luis Obispo. He has served as head winemaker at Mumm Napa and Senior Vice President at Sterling Vineyards and has managed operations for Seagram Chateau & Estates in California.

Today, in addition to making wine at Bricoleur Vineyards, Cary consults for wineries such as Davis Estates and Lawer Estates in Calistoga. If his surname sounds familiar, you may have dined at one of his family’s Gott’s Roadside restaurant locations in the Bay Area and Napa Valley or sipped his son’s Joel Gott Wines.

Bob Cabral

Co-Head Winemaker

A fourth generation grape grower, Cabral grew up on a ranch in California’s Central Valley, and has a sixth sense for identifying expressive sites. 2023 will mark Cabral’s 44^th vintage as a winemaker. He has built a lasting reputation for crafting Pinot Noir and Chardonnay with freshness and vibrancy, that express the nuances of their respective vineyards. Cabral was Wine Enthusiast Magazine’s 2011 Winemaker of the Year, and made the first 100-point North American Pinot Noir during his outstanding 17-year tenure at Williams Selyem. Cabral, formerly the winemaker for eight years at Three Sticks and for 17 years at Williams Selyem, now makes his own wines for Bob Cabral Wines. Holding a firm belief that “great winemaking is always doing the right thing when nobody is looking,”

Tom Pierson

Associate Winemaker

Tom grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area and developed a fascination for food production at an early age. He started his undergraduate education at the Claremont Colleges in Southern California where he explored different science programs. Desiring a more immersive educational experience, he found the Agroecology department at the Evergreen State College in Washington focused on food science and agriculture. Upon graduation, Tom explored roles ranging from operating a 6-acre urban farm through the AmeriCorps program to diving into Silicon Valley’s emerging AgTech industry.

In 2018, the Hanson Family and winemaker Cary Gott approached Tom to join their project. Having appreciated good wine for years and its ability to enhance the culinary experience, Tom saw this as the opportunity of a lifetime, uniting his passion for agriculture and science through the craft of winemaking. His tutelage under Cary Gott has been invaluable. Tom’s education has been further supplemented by his surroundings at Punchdown Cellars where he has the fortune of collaborating with some of the best in the industry. Not one to shy away from a challenge, Tom has kept stride with the ever-evolving project at Bricoleur Vineyards, managing both estate vineyards and winemaking operations.