Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Robinson.
Amanda, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Amanda Robinson’s story doesn’t begin in a boardroom or vineyard—it starts in a theater, in a jazz club, in the warmth of a family where performance and purpose run side by side.
Her great-great-grandfather, great-grandmother, and great-grandfather played in the San Francisco Symphony, and her grandmother toured and performed along the West Coast in vaudeville. During World War II, Amanda’s grandfather, a jazz pianist, and her grandmother, a dancer and performer in her own right, met while they entertained troops—he played the piano and she danced. On her father’s side, Amanda’s grandparents were Salvation Army ministers. They dedicated their lives to helping others. Her parents met in junior high while doing the musical Pajama Game, and her mother later sang with the Fort Worth Symphony.
Growing up in Abilene, Amanda spent countless hours in the theater while her mom rehearsed. “Maybe that’s why I’ve always loved working in places with stages,” she reflects. Music, service, and storytelling weren’t just hobbies—they were in her DNA.
Her early years were marked by significant change. In the 1980s, the oil industry collapsed, and her father—like many others—was laid off. The family relocated to the Dallas-Fort Worth metroplex. In High School, Amanda dreamed of becoming a Neurosurgeon. She joined a medical program, took part in theater and gymnastics, and held down parttime jobs—all in the food & beverage industry. But after high school, a different kind of stage came calling.
At Hyena’s Comedy Club & Club 604 in Fort Worth, Amanda worked the bar and landed a side gig as a magician’s assistant. “I lucked—or talked—my way into it,” she laughs. “It was pure theater kid heaven.”
College brought a more profound shift. Amanda was diagnosed with endometriosis, a painful condition that forced her to reevaluate her future, especially her hopes of becoming a mother. She found comfort and momentum in hospitality, rising from server to bartender to Assistant Food & Beverage Manager at prominent Dallas’ Design District and Market Center hotels. But she missed the spark of connection bartending offered. “There were only two passions I had before wine: medicine and theater. Bartending let me live out both. It let me entertain people celebrating their lives—and be there for someone who just needed an ear.”
She took shifts at places like Jack’s Pub, Umlaut, DNA, and Red Jacket, where she reconnected with a familiar face—her future husband. By chance, they had both gone to elementary school in Abilene, though they hadn’t known each other then.
Soon, they were both working at the legendary Gypsy Tea Room in Deep Ellum, which hosted acts like Snoop Dogg, Robert Plant, and a teenage Maren Morris. The couple married at Gypsy and opened a recording studio in the same building, living there while they renovated. Amanda, never one to sit still, juggled bartending, nannying, leasing apartments, and landing a job at the Dallas World Trade Center where she repped children’s toys from manufacturer to retail.
“I got to play with toys all day. It was one of the most fun jobs I’ve ever had,” she says. But juggling bartending, sales, the studio, and a new house was overwhelming. She returned to full-time bartending at Vickery Park, and eventually to Terilli’s on Greenville Avenue—an iconic restaurant, that at the time in 2011 had just reopened after a fire the year prior.
In 2013, Amanda and her husband moved back to Abilene to care for his ailing parents, take care of the family farm and open a restaurant. Construction began in spring 2014, and almost simultaneously, when they broke ground on their new adventure, Amanda discovered she was pregnant. They opened their restaurant on October 31st, and she gave birth to their daughter on December 9th. “It was a whirlwind,” she says. “I stayed home at first, doing payroll and back-of-house work. But once my daughter was old enough for preschool, I stepped back in as much as possible.”
Then came a turning point: a wine-paired birthday dinner that changed everything.
“I had never experienced a meal paired with wine like that before,” Amanda says. “After 25 years in hospitality, I was blown away.” She began studying for her Level 1 Sommelier certification, which she completed during the pandemic. “That’s when I realized—maybe my picky palate was my superpower,” she jokes. She launched a wine program at their restaurant and began hosting pairing dinners, eager to share the experience with others.
But as her professional life bloomed, her marriage came to an end. Amanda packed up her daughter and returned to the metroplex. “It was terrifying. I’d worked for myself for over 20 years. I’ve never made a resume and never interviewed for a job. Every job I’ve ever gotten was just from knowing someone or being in the right place at the right time. But she had programmed POS systems, run payroll, filed taxes, built menus, managed staff, and kept a restaurant alive through COVID. She didn’t just understand hospitality— she lived it.
Still, she felt adrift—what new venture would she get into? During her move, she started to wonder what job would allow her the freedom to be the mom and woman she wanted to be while still providing a decent life for her and her daughter. What skill set did she have? 30 years in the Food & Beverage Industry. A newly discovered tasting superpower. And the chutzpah to go along with it. She phoned up the distributor, who unbeknownst to him, had one of the wines that started this journey.
Sam, from Redoux Wines, owned the distributorship that carried one of the wines from that life-changing meal. They met during the pandemic, when Sam had scaled back his business and was running a one-man operation at the time.
Amanda called him up and asked, “Are you still doing this all by yourself? Would you want a partner?”
He said yes.
Today, Amanda is a partner in Redoux Wines, combining her sommelier training, sales experience, and lifelong hospitality intuition. “Family, freedom, owning my own business, the love of wine and people—that’s what drives me,” she says. “And I bring something most reps don’t. I’ve been behind the bar, on the floor, in the back office, and owned a restaurant. I understand my customers because I’ve been them.”
Amanda has spent time as a victim advocate, supporting people in crisis. “That work could be hard, but being there for someone in their time of need is advantageous,” she says. “Once settled, I’d love to return to that service. It’s so important.”
For Amanda Robinson, wine isn’t the destination—it’s the vessel. Her story is reinvention, rooted in the rhythm of family, music, compassion, and connection. From behind the bar to small business owner, Amanda’s path has been anything but ordinary. And that’s precisely what makes it so powerful.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
What even is a smooth road when you’re running your own business? I don’t think one exists. Every imaginable challenge shows up—usually in real time—and you’re forced to adapt, learn, and grow on the fly and it’s all part of the journey.
The pandemic was a major turning point for everyone. It pushed us to reevaluate everything—our business, our values, and what truly mattered for our family. We had to pivot quickly to stay afloat and—most importantly—we found a renewed sense of purpose and energy for the business we had built.
Ironically, the pandemic gave us a moment to pause and reconnect. It made us more intentional. And I’m grateful every single day for that chapter. It wasn’t easy, but it was transformative.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your business?
Redoux Wine, based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, is a boutique wine distributor dedicated to bringing hand‑picked, family‑owned, small‑production wines from around the globe to Texas wine lovers. Founded by Samuel Rickords, Redoux started by importing boutique Sonoma and Napa labels. Sam had grown up in Sonoma and knew this area like the back of his hand. He has since expanded his portfolio from regions like Oregon, Washington, Portugal, Italy, and beyond.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
I see the wine industry evolving into a more specialized, story-driven, and experience-focused space. Consumers are moving away from mass-produced wines and seeking out small-batch, sustainably made, and organically farmed options—especially those that reflect a strong sense of place and an authentic story. This shift creates a unique opportunity for boutique portfolios like ours to truly shine.
There’s also a notable generational change underway. Millennials and Gen Z are drinking less, but they’re drinking better. They value authenticity, transparency, and ethical production. Wines made with clean farming practices, minimal intervention, and real people behind the labels are gaining traction—and that trend will only grow stronger.
On the sales front, I anticipate a continued push toward relationship-based curation. Sommeliers, buyers, and even consumers are becoming more interested in who’s behind the portfolio, not just what’s in the bottle. With so many options out there, retail and restaurant buyers are increasingly relying on trusted partners who thoughtfully curate selections with purpose.
Climate change is already reshaping how and where wine is made—and that will continue. We’ll see new regions rise, traditional regions adapt, and producers make tough decisions around sustainability, water use, and long-term resilience. While these changes are driven by necessity, they’re also a powerful catalyst for innovation. That’s what excites me most—watching creativity thrive in the face of challenge
Contact Info:
- Website: https://redouxwine.com/
