ABOUT US

C.L. BUTAUD WINES

C.L. Butaud was founded in Austin, Texas, in 2014 by husband and wife Randy and Brooke Hester. Their mission was to create ultra-premium wines entirely from Texas vineyards, building on their experience working at some of the most acclaimed Napa Valley wineries. The Hesters’ winemaking journey began in 2006 in Napa Valley, where they set out on a 10-year path of training, education and research under noteworthy winemakers and mentors.

C.L. Butaud has been recognized as a top Texas wine by Texas Monthly, the Texas Department of Agriculture, Austin Monthly, Austin American Statesman, Houston Chronicle, Forbes, and has been reviewed by Decanter, Wine Advocate, James Suckling, and VinePair, with inclusion in Vine Pair's 50 Best Wines of 2021, and “30 Best Red Wines to drink in 2022.” The 2017 Tempranillo received a 91-point score by Decanter and the 2019 Desert Willow Mourvèdre was named VinePair’s Top 50 Wines of 2021.

RANDY HESTER, WINEMAKER

Houston native Randy Hester knew he wanted to make wine after working in the fine wines division of a major distributor. Hester discovered it was more than just sales for him – he wanted to be in a profession where he could create with his own hands and share the fruits of his labor to elevate the wine drinking experience. In order to gain the right education, training and experience to achieve their goal of making a difference in the Texas wine industry, the couple moved to California in 2006.

After moving to Napa, Hester began as a 36-year-old intern at Cakebread Cellars, eventually working full-time, and coupled his training with viticulture and enology courses at Napa Valley College on nights and weekends. Though his formal education was essential to his growth in winemaking, Hester credits his craft to the world class winemakers that he was fortunate enough to work with, including highly acclaimed winemakers such as Andy Erickson, Michel Rolland, Mike Hirby, and Helen Keplinger, at various distinguished producers including Colgin Cellars, Caldwell Vineyard, Realm Cellars, and Marciano Estate. The Hesters launched Lightning Wines in 2011 and focused on making Grenache and other Rhone varietals.

As the final step to the 10-year plan, C.L. Butaud Wines was created in 2014 with a focus on creating high-quality wines that proudly utilize 100-percent Texas grown grapes. Their first Texas harvest took place in 2014 before the couple moved to Austin, Texas in 2017.

C.L. Butaud is an homage to Randy’s great grandfather, named Clet Louis Butaud, who was known as Frenchy. Randy utilizes a minimalist and sometimes experimental approach to winemaking, paying respect to centuries of evolution in winemaking, while backing up his artistic instinct with the empirical data of fermentation science.