Wine Industry Executive Profile: Herb Rowland Jr.

<h3>Herb Rowland Jr.</h3> Owner and manager, Pacheco Vineyard; partner and co-founder, Pacheco Ranch Winery; 235 Alameda Del Prado Road, Novato 94949; 415-883-5583; www.pachecoranchwinery.com<br> <b>Career</b>: Assistant manager, 1969-1977, owner and manager, 1977-present, Pacheco Vineyard; partner and co-founder, Pacheco Ranch Winery, 1979-present; owner, HMR Mediation, Novato; attorney, Ragghianti Freitas LLP, San Rafael, 2006-present<br> <b>Education</b>: B.A. in classical literature, U.C. Davis, 1973; J.D., University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law, 1976<br> <b>Staff</b>: 10 part-time family members and friends; 60 to 70 friends at harvest<br> <b>Age</b>: 59<br> <b>Residence</b>: Novato<br> <b>Family</b>: wife, Debbie, and two children, Cassandra, 26, and Herb III, 25<br> Industry/economic outlook: “The market seems very strong for wines that are appropriately priced. The mid-priced range of $20 to $40 a bottle seems to have real upside. We don’t want to price our wines so our friends can’t buy them.”<br> <b>Toughest decision</b>: “Not to buy white grapes and make wine. The winemaker needs to have a lot of contact with the grapes. On the other hand, we have lost opportunities because markets like to have a choice of a white and a red, perhaps buying two cases of a red for a case of white.”<br> Biggest risk: “Planting grapes in Marin, when all said they would not grow, and building a winery. The first was out of stubbornness, and the second fell into place when we had a product and a built-in winemaker we knew would be around forever.”<br> <b>Favorite tasks</b>: Driving a tractor in the vineyard, planting grapevines, training vines, harvest and crush, the latter two of which are done with a large group of friends.<br> Favorite wine pioneers: Richard Steltzer, Rodney Strong, August Sebastiani and Louis Martini helped us when we were getting started.<br> <b>Current reading</b>: “Inverse Condemnation: Unintended Physical Damage” by Arvo Van Alsteyne on flood-related litigation. He represents San Anselmo, Fairfax, Mill Valley and other Marin governments with claims related to the New Year’s Day 2006 flood.<br> <b>Stress reliever</b>: Fly fishing on Henry’s Fork of the Snake River in Idaho<br> <b>Words that best describe you</b>: Determined, prepared and strong