Our Story
Rob Hammelman
Winemaker, Rob Hammelman, began his wine journey in Arizona in 2000 while taking a summer from teaching Humanities and Sciences to work in the vineyard of one of Arizona’s wine pioneers, Callaghan Vineyards. It didn’t take long to recognize that while drinking Arizona wine, the aromas and textures had a magical way of transporting him right back to the high desert vineyard where they were grown. This early experience of terroir ignited a passion and so the dream began to grow vines and make wine in Arizona.
Rob later earned a graduate diploma in Oenology from the University of Adelaide in South Australia. In Australia, his love for Rhone varieties grew while working in the cellars at Hewitson and with one of the oldest vineyards in the world – the Old Garden Mourvèdre planted in 1853. After Australia, Rob made his way to Colorado where he was winemaker at Two Rivers Winery. There, he made wine from some of the highest altitude vineyards in US, including one of his favorites – Riesling grown at 6,000 ft.
Rob Hammelman
Our Story
Winemaker, Rob Hammelman, began his wine journey in Arizona in 2000 while taking a summer from teaching Humanities and Sciences to work in the vineyard of one of Arizona’s wine pioneers, Callaghan Vineyards. It didn’t take long to recognize that while drinking Arizona wine, the aromas and textures had a magical way of transporting him right back to the high desert vineyard where they were grown. This early experience of terroir ignited a passion and so the dream began to grow vines and make wine in Arizona.
Rob later earned a graduate diploma in Oenology from the University of Adelaide in South Australia. In Australia, his love for Rhone varieties grew while working in the cellars at Hewitson and with one of the oldest vineyards in the world – the Old Garden Mourvèdre planted in 1853. After Australia, Rob made his way to Colorado where he was winemaker at Two Rivers Winery. There, he made wine from some of the highest altitude vineyards in US, including one of his favorites – Riesling grown at 6,000 ft.
The dream of working in the Old World was fulfilled in 2008 when Rob worked in the cellars of Chateau St. Cosme in Gigondas, France under Louis Barroul. Working in a 2000-year-old cellar and with 100+ year old Grenache vines was an irreplaceable education in history, culture, and traditional winegrowing and has had a great influence on Rob’s current winemaking style.
Rob is proud to have made it full circle back to Arizona to continue the journey in producing world-class wine!
The dream of working in the Old World was fulfilled in 2008 when Rob worked in the cellars of Chateau St. Cosme in Gigondas, France under Louis Barroul. Working in a 2000-year-old cellar and with 100+ year old Grenache vines was an irreplaceable education in history, culture, and traditional winegrowing and has had a great influence on Rob’s current winemaking style.
Rob is proud to have made it full circle back to Arizona to continue the journey in producing world-class wine!
Sarah Fox
Operations
Sarah’s wine journey began while studying Psychology at the University of Colorado at Boulder. What began as wine dates with friends became a serious exploration into the science, art, and soul of wine. The mystery she found in a glass of wine was intoxicating, and the notion of terroir fascinated her. A Colorado native, Sarah started her wine career on the Western Slope of the Rockies with Two Rivers Winery, and dove deeper into her exploration of wine with a harvest at Etude in Carneros, vineyard work in Gigondas, and time selling wine in retail and fine dining in Colorado and Arizona.
Sarah’s enduring love of the mystery found in terroir, and the connection wine creates between people and place, drives her passion for creating meaningful experiences for all at the Sand-Reckoner Tasting Room.
Sarah Fox
Operations
Sarah’s wine journey began while studying Psychology at the University of Colorado at Boulder. What began as wine dates with friends became a serious exploration into the science, art, and soul of wine. The mystery she found in a glass of wine was intoxicating, and the notion of terroir fascinated her. A Colorado native, Sarah started her wine career on the Western Slope of the Rockies with Two Rivers Winery, and dove deeper into her exploration of wine with a harvest at Etude in Carneros, vineyard work in Gigondas, and time selling wine in retail and fine dining in Colorado and Arizona.
Sarah’s enduring love of the mystery found in terroir, and the connection wine creates between people and place, drives her passion for creating meaningful experiences for all at the Sand-Reckoner Tasting Room.