Twisted Roots Celebrates its 100th Anniversary in 2018 Tasting Room Renovation Completed, Expanded Hours, Music Series Announced and More! Salinas, CA, May 22, 2018 - The Schmiedt family vineyard, was first planted with wine grapes in the
rich soil of Lodi in 1918. But it took the family 87 years to decide to use those grapes to make their own wines in addition to selling the grapes to winemakers around the state. That was 2005, when Twisted Roots Vineyards was born and Ross Schmiedt produced a Petite Sirah because of an overabundance of the grape. In 2009, production was expanded to include other varietals on the estate, including Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Old Vine Zinfandel. The winemaking operation was moved from an old farmhouse to their partners at Estate Crush in Lodi, a dedicated custom crush facility for premium wine production that continues to produce Twisted Roots wines from grapes grown at the Schmiedt Vineyards. In 2010, Josh Ruiz partnered with Mike Hodge and Ross Schmiedt to create Twisted Roots Wine LLC. Schmiedt passed away in March of 2014 and his place in the partnership was filled by his wife Susan Schmiedt. Twisted Roots raised a few eyebrows when it opened a tasting room in Carmel Valley in 2013. “At first, some of the other winemakers were leery about having a Lodi winery here,” Ruiz told Carmel magazine,“ but they’ve accepted us.” New Ownership In January of 2016, Ruiz and his wife Julie, who is Schmiedt's niece and Hodge's daughter, bought Twisted Roots from the family. A few months later, the Ruizes brought on board a few college friends to help expand the business. “My wife Julie and I bought the family business in January and in June we brought in three of our college friends, who live in different locations in the state, to help us grow the business,” said Ruiz. “I knew that with a full-time job in the Salinas Valley Produce business, I needed help. These are all trusted friends, who have become like family, and it's all about growing the business. I can't do it myself.” Ruiz, who graduated from Cal Poly San Luis Obispo with both a bachelor's and master's degree in Agribusiness, asked his college friends Andy Gulley of Fresno, Matt Brem of Salinas and Neil Amarante of Paso Robles (and Andy and Matt's wives, both named Laura), to join Twisted Roots.