Hi, I’m Fiorella—but most of you know me as Fio.

If you’ve visited us at the tasting room or joined us for anevent, you’ve probably seen me pouring your wine, running around making sure everything is flowing smoothly, or maybe even with one of my kids—Felix and Gianna, who are very much part of this journey too.

These days, I wear a lot of hats. I make the wines, run thebusiness operations that keep Rockbound moving, and manage the tasting room. But more than anything, Rockbound represents something deeply personal to me.

It’s a rebirth.

A chance to build something entirely new—something more fulfilling, more hands-on, and more connected to the life I want to live.

Where It All Started
Wine wasn’t always the plan.

I came to the Central Coast to attend Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, which is what first drew me to this area. After graduating, I began working as a Contractor at NASA Ames Research Center, supporting the wind tunnel division. What started as an internship turned into a 15-year career.

I worked as a business manager, handling finance, human resources, procurement, and leading a team. It was structured, analytical, and deeply mission-driven work. And while it may seem like a completely different world, that experience is something I lean on every day while running Rockbound.

Back then, my days looked very different. I wore heels towork and spent most of my time behind a computer, deep in spreadsheets.

Now, I live in Blundstones—and no two days look the same.

A New Chapter in Paso Robles
When we made the move to Paso Robles and purchased our 33-acre property in the Adelaida District, everything began to shift.

At first, it was just land. But as we cleared it and planted the vineyard, a vision started to take shape. One that felt exciting—but also incredibly risky.

I had never owned a business before. And I had never made wine.

So I did what I’ve always done when stepping into something new: I went back to school. I enrolled in the UC Davis Winemaking Program to learn the fundamentals and make sure this was something I truly wanted to pursue.

That’s where I discovered how much I loved it—the balance of science and art. I’m someone who enjoys working with data, understanding the chemistry, and tracking the details. But I also appreciate the intuitive side of winemaking—the part where you step back and let things unfold in the cellar.

Learning the Hard Way (and the Right Way)

In 2021, we made our first small batch of wine and partnered with Alta Colina, a local, family-owned winery just down the road. Their winemaker, Molly Lonborg, took me on as an intern, and we were able to produce our wines through their custom crush program.

That first harvest? It tested me.

My back hurt. My hands were rough. I had never worked with pumps or large equipment before, and there were moments where I truly didn’t know what I was doing. I remember walking around feeling completely out of place and thinking, what did I get myself into?

One day, I came home completely exhausted—with a bee sting on my lip and my hands-stained deep purple from handling grapes all day. I remember looking at myself and realizing those were my battle wounds. Proof that I was out there doing the work, learning something new, and building something from the ground up.

And still, I kept going.

By my third harvest, the challenge looked different—but no less intense. I had a newborn to juggle alongside midnight harvests. It pushed me in ways I hadn’t experienced before, but it also showed me something important: that it’s possible to pursue what you love while building a family alongside it.

And then, just last year, I found myself pregnant during harvest—four months in, still out there doing the work, even stomping several macro bins along the way.

What’s funny is that in the beginning, I had never even used a pump before. It felt completely foreign to do pump overs on wine. But by the end of my fourth harvest, myself and the other women in the cellar had earned a nickname—we became known as the “pump queens.”.

Each season asked more of me. And with each one, I grew stronger, more capable, and more certain that this was exactly where I was meant to be. The Moment It Became Real
There was one moment when everything came full circle.

We opened a bottle of our 2021 wine with someone who wasn’t family or a friend—someone with no reason to say anything other than what they truly felt. They tasted it, lit up, and wanted to buy it on the spot.

After years of work—planting the vineyard, learning the craft, making the wine, waiting—it all came together in that one moment. Someone experienced what we had created and wanted more of it.

That’s when I knew: I’m really doing this. I’m awinemaker.

Stepping Into My Own
Fast forward to 2025—that’s when everything shifted again.

We moved our production to a new facility, and I fully stepped into leading winemaking decisions for Rockbound. Around the same time, we opened our tasting room, creating a space to share these wines and this story directly with all of you.

It’s been an exciting and evolving process—one that continues to challenge and inspire me every day.

Looking Back (and Ahead)
If you had told me years ago, while I was working at NASA, that I’d one day be making wine in Paso Robles, I wouldn’t have believed you.

But here we are.

Rockbound is more than a business—it’s a reflection of risk, growth, and the willingness to start over. It’s a family story, one that Felix and Gianna are growing up alongside every day.

And more than anything, I hope that as they grow up in this environment, they see that you can do anything with your life—as long as you put your best foot forward and work hard for it.

Thank you for being part of this journey.

—Fio

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