Meet Ashley Robles | Wine Guide

We had the good fortune of connecting with Ashley Robles and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Ashley, can you tell us about an impactful book you’ve read and why you liked it or what impact it had on you?
This is such a relevant question! I just picked up Atomic Habits by James Clear, and it’s so applicable to anything you have going on in your life. It’s a book about creating small, good habits that have a big payoff in the end. I love the examples he gives and how he explains how to setup systems to meet your goals.

One of the key things that really hit me was to just be 1% better every day. It could be anything, so long as it helps get you in the direction of you what you’re trying to achieve. That had a big impact on me and my perspective of my wine business. Things like self-care, reading wine books, organizing my wine area at home, writing more about my wine experiences, are all things that in the end help me with my wine tasting business! And I don’t have to be an overnight success with 10 million followers on IG or anything; keeping up consistent good habits will push me further than I could ever imagine.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
I started my wine tasting business with Traveling Vineyard as an Independent Wine Guide about a year and a half ago. I had so much fun doing tastings for people and learning about wines, I decided to start posting about it on Instagram. From there, my brand as AshleyTheWinosaur started to grow. I have since been asked to collaborate with both big and small brands in the wine industry.

It definitely wasn’t easy. There are plenty of barriers trying to break through the noise on IG, but on top of that, being a Black woman in the wine world is another struggle of its own. Some other Black women in wine and I have gotten together to help make brands more aware to represent us.

In general, I’ve learned a lot of lessons from being a wine content creator as well as being a Wine Guide. The biggest thing is to remember to always be myself. My followers can expect to see more diverse content on my IG page to include everyday life experiences outside of wine. AshleyTheWinosaur is more than just wine; it’s an experience of bonding over life with a glass in hand.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
It’s so hard for me to come up with a fun list of places to visit now that I’ve officially been stuck at home for over a year! But I would definitely do something like…

Breakfast at Black Walnut in Vintage Park – the mimosas are amazing
Lunch at Las Flores on Stuebner Airline – that grande sangria margarita will have you RIGHT

Dinner at Piola’s downtown – yummy pizza and wine
Party time at Pour Behavior where my buddy Ernesto kills the DJ scene (and after hours eats from his brother’s taco stand OMG…)

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Wow, so there are plenty of things I could mention that contributed to my success and where I am today! But to keep it simple and highlight what has been most impactful, I definitely want to shout out my husband for always whispering words of encouragement in my ear. I also have to shout out the woman who gave me my first sip of wine and well, gave me my LIFE; my mama!

Website: www.ashleythewinosaur.com

Instagram: @ashleythewinosaur

Other: www.wineguide.life/robles