Locals' Feature: Alex Villicana

Alex Villicana, from Villicana Winery & Re:Find Distillery in Paso Robles

05.20.2025
Alex Villicana, Villicana Winery and Re:Find Distillery

Tech booms, AI revolutions, okay that’s all fine, but you wanna know what else is really cool? Being a pioneer in a world-famous industry that—in Paso Robles—remains solidly down to earth. When Alex Villicana established Villicana Winery in 1993, he clearly had grape expectations for Paso’s favorable viticulture climate; the winery was one of only 20 in Paso Robles at that time. Today, over 300 wineries crisscross Paso’s bucolic and mountainous landscape.

Alex Villicana of Villicana Winery, working a grape harvest in Paso Robles

Alex and his wife Monica moved from Southern California to Paso Robles full-time several years later and in 2023 were voted Wine Industry People of the Year.

Alex and Monica Villicana of Villicana Winery and Re:Find Distillery

The innovation didn’t stop at Villicana’s limited-production premier wine. In the “spirit” of sustainability and a no-waste philosophy, they created Re:Find Distillery (Paso Robles’s first distillery, established in 2011).

The idea was to use the saignée (free run juice) that wineries woefully discard during winemaking, and use it to make all-natural spirits, like limoncello, cucumber vodka, and rye whiskey.

Taste for yourself when you visit Villicana Winery and Re:Find Distillery in Paso Robles. The tasting room is part of the working winery so you not only get to sip and sample and picnic, you also have a good chance of meeting Alex and Monica on-site and observing the process of making magic in a bottle.

Alex and Monica Villicana, wearing Re:Find Distillerytee shirts and standing out in front of Villicana Winery and Re:Find Distillery

Something we love about Paso Robles’s wine and spirit country is its roots-run-deep community vibes and humble, passionate, down-to-earth nature. We’ll drink to that!

The vineyards at Villicana Winery in Paso Robles

Villicana Winery and Re:Find Distillery are a dream built from the ground up!

Listen to Weekend Sherpa’s podcast Take It Outside episode 67, "Spring into Summer” to hear our conversation with Alex Villicana.

Check out Weekend Sherpa’s feature on Paso Robles: Road Trip to Real California.

Trending Stories NorCal

View all Stories

  1. Sequoia Re-opens Crystal Cave

    Step inside Sequoia & Kings Canyon National Park's hidden world by visiting the newly re-opened Crystal Cave—the only cave in the parks open to the public. Closed for four years, this rare marble karst cavern is welcoming visitors once again, but only through the summer season!

    View

  2. Afternoon on the Island

    What is it about tiny islands in the middle of lakes? There’s something that just draws you in. It’s even more fun when getting there is half the adventure because you have to reach it by canoe, kayak, paddleboat, or a ranger-guided boat tour!

    View

  3. Easiest Best Hike in the World

    Choose the easiest and most view-rewarding hike in Yosemite. Okay, we’ll go first: the combination of hiking to Sentinel Dome and Taft Point. Both of these lookouts are within a couple miles of each other on Glacier Point Road

    View
  4. Hiker in the forest at Mount Sutro in San Francisco

    San Francisco's Middle Earth

    No need to travel to New Zealand to visit Middle Earth. San Francisco’s Mount Sutro Open Space is practically Hobbiton—a hidden “shire” in the middle of the city. Okay, maybe not quite as magical, but still an incredible place to take a hike in city limits.

    View

Trending Stories SoCal

View all Stories

  1. Locals' Feature: Jim Litchfield, Owner of Reno Fly Shop

    If there's a river, you're likely to find Jim Litchfield there. As the owner of Reno Fly Shop, Nevada's premier fly fishing outfitter and shop, Jim's passion for rivers knows no bounds: he's fished in places near and far, including Alaska, Bolivia and Christmas Island. But home is beautiful Reno, where he has been running Reno Fly Shop and leading tailored river float and fly fishing adventures (including beginner-friendly options) for over a decade.

    View

  2. Volcanic Activity

    Northern California is home to one of the most unique ecosystems in the country: Lassen Volcanic National Park. The region features geothermal areas, including the largest dome volcano in the world, Lassen Peak. Hike to the top of this active volcano on a 5-mile out-and-back.  

    View

  3. Great Is an Understatement!

    Tucked against the Utah border in eastern Nevada, Great Basin is a hiking wonderland of 13,000-foot peaks, ancient forests, sub-alpine lakes, and marbled limestone caves.

    View
  4. Lake Nacimiento
    Sponsored

    Savor Summer in Paso Robles

    Ready for the “Great California Road Trip”? Keep it real and rolling in bucolic and beautiful Paso Robles. This down- to-earth destination has everything you need to enjoy the coolest experiences.

    View