Jose Ignacio Licea, General Manager, Eastern Washington
Photo taken in front of our Union Gap Estate Vineyard
Nacho was born to a farming family, and in addition to being an astute vineyard leader, has an innate awareness of agriculture. He earned a Bachelor´s degree, followed by a Master´s Degree, in Business Management with a minor in Senior Management from the University of Colima. He moved to Washington State in 2001, establishing his first contact with the wine industry. His tenure included management of Alder Creek Vineyard in Alderdale Washington, a 180 acre vineyard, where, in addition to the vines, he managed customer relations, the vineyard crew, and budgets.
He joined the Owen Roe family in 2008 and currently holds the General Manager position in Eastern Washington. He supervises bottling, winery plant and property, and works closely with David in all aspects of employee and winery work in Eastern WA, and vineyard management and harvest logistics.
When he is not at work you will find him with his family. Whether that be walking through nature with his wife and kids or cooking dinner. He said cooking makes him and the people around him happy, so that is why he loves it so much. Lastly, if he finds some alone time in his busy life, he enjoys reading history books.
He is a fantastic human and a family man as well as a mentor to all in the winery and vineyard. Ask anyone about Nacho and they will have nothing but great things to say about him. Thank you Nacho for all you do!
