Wrestling and winemaking might make for strange bedfellows in the same story, especially grappling for position in a single sentence. But the young lives of the Manuel brothers, Luke (LA’11) and Matt (A’12), have been distinguished by matted maneuvers and growing grapes. The former Purdue wrestlers, now part of a family-owned winemaking business in California, say success in both is a byproduct of hard work.

The Manuel family had long been in the agricultural part of the wine business, farming and selling grapes in the Sierra Foothills since Luke and Matt, the youngest of three brothers, were infants. Their parents, Paul and Kellye, launched Chacewater Winery & Olive Mill in 2008.

Both Manuel boys took early to wrestling, their lone sport of choice — although Luke says his ability didn’t click until his high school sophomore year, when he realized he could compete with better wrestlers. He was recruited to Purdue by Jessie Reyes (LA’80), the head coach with California connections. “Mentally and physically, Big Ten wrestling is the toughest thing I’ve ever gone through,” says Luke. “No other conference has that schedule. You’re facing a top 12 guy every week.” 

Two years Luke’s junior, Matt was lured to Purdue by Scott Hinkel (LA’88, MA LA’90), who succeeded Reyes. Both brothers agree that making weight and surviving the grind of a long wrestling season, along with classroom challenges, have made subsequent endeavors seem easy by comparison. While in graduate school at American University in Washington, DC, Luke received some wine and a tote bag from his father, who suggested he try selling the new brand in a few stores. In a business populated with seasoned veterans, Luke drew some strange reactions as a young guy peddling wine. But he found success, eventually setting up distribution outlets in Maryland and Connecticut. As the sales manager now living in Phoenix, he’s managing all aspects of distribution — selling to restaurants and retail stores, making deliveries, and visiting out-of-state distributors.

Matt, who studied agriculture business at Purdue, is back on the California farm, serving as the vineyard manager for 36 acres, where he strategizes the growing process and leads the manual labor efforts that deliver healthy crops. “We focus really hard on not having synthetic inputs on the farm,” says Matt, who likens wine to wrestling through self-motivation and the time spent in practice. “I believe the hard work we put into our vines, being certified organic, helps us produce a high-quality wine.”