Robert Jones joined Kysela Père et Fils, LTD. in June 2001, after approximately 14 years of working with wine in restaurants, hotels and private clubs in these areas - Roanoke VA, Charlotte NC, Martha’s Vineyard MA, Atlanta GA & Richmond VA.

Under Robert’s tenure as the sommelier and assistant front of house manager for the Dining Room the Ritz-Carlton, Buckhead in Atlanta, GA (1996 – 1999) the restaurant earned the Mobil 5 Star award, becoming one of 14 restaurants in the country to achieve that distinction. In October 1999 Robert passed the service and blind tasting components of the Master Sommelier exam, and in March 2001 he passed the theoretical component of the Master Sommelier exam, becoming the country’s 50th Master Sommelier. Today there are 202 Master Sommeliers worldwide, and 139 in the USA.

Robert enjoys all types and styles of wine; among his favorite regions are Champagne, the Mosel valley, Burgundy, the Loire valley, Alsace, the Rhone valley, Rioja, South Africa and Madeira. Rum is his spirit of choice and Belgian ales are his favorite category of beer.

Robert is a family man - married to the chef & caterer who interviewed him for a job on Martha’s Vineyard in 1994. He and his wife have a son and a daughter, and a Brittany named Leo. He enjoys traveling, cooking, tending to his garden, hiking the mountains of southwest VA, bicycling around the lake in his neighborhood, and driving twisty back roads.