Bob Pecota once traveled the globe as a coffee buyer for Hills Brothers and MJB Coffee. After earning an undergraduate degree and an MBA in international business from the University of California at Berkeley, he switched careers, taking a job as a land acquisition manager and grape and bulk wine buyer for Beringer Vineyards in Napa Valley. Bob’s burgeoning interest in wine soon became a passionate quest to start his own winery. In 1974, he acquired 40 acres of vineyard land in the northern end of Napa Valley near Calistoga, and subsequently established Robert Pecota Winery in 1978.

Bob is involved in every aspect of the winery’s operations. On any given day, you'll find him in the vineyard tending vines, in the cellar sampling wines from barrel or wax-sealing magnum bottles of Kara’s Vineyard Cabernet Sauvignon, or in the office supervising sales and marketing activities. Bob also finds time to serve on the boards of various Napa Valley organizations, such as the Napa Valley Vintners Association, the Napa Valley College Foundation, the Elaine Mackie Charitable Trust, and the Calistoga Community Pool Project, among many others. In 2002, he was Chairman of the Napa Valley Wine Auction, which raises millions of dollars annually for Napa Valley hospitals and health clinics.