Steven Spadarotto Appointed Vice President and General Manager for Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars

Ste. Michelle Wine Estates and Marchesi Antinori announced today that they have appointed Steven Spadarotto as the new Vice President and General Manager for Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars effective July 5, 2011

Spadarotto has more than 20 years of winery management, operations and finance experience in the California wine industry, including general manager responsibilities for Napa Valley winery Clos Pegase and Cambria Winery & Vineyards in the Santa Maria Valley. He also has held executive-level operations roles for Jackson Family Farms and Diageo Chateau and Estate Wines. Most recently, he was Vice President of Operations and Supply for Treasury Wine Estates. “Steve’s leadership and operational expertise are well-suited for the responsibility of upholding the legacy of Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars as a Napa Valley first growth,” said Ted Baseler, President and CEO of Ste. Michelle Wine Estates.

A joint venture partnership between Washington’s Ste. Michelle Wine Estates and Italy’s Marchesi Antinori acquired the legendary winery and S.L.V. and Fay estate vineyards in 2007.

Spadarotto said, “Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars has a unique place in the history books for its role in building regard and prestige for the Napa Valley. I am looking forward to working with Ste. Michelle, the Antinori family and the Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars team to build on the winery’s historic success.” Spadarotto earned a BS in Business Administration from the University of Missouri-Columbia and an MBA from the University of California-Davis. He presently serves on the Dean’s Advisory Council for the UC Davis Graduate School of Management.

About Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars Stag’s Leap Wine Cellars was founded in 1970. The winery gained worldwide recognition on May 24, 1976 when French wine experts judged, in a blind tasting, that two California wines were as good as, or better than, the best wines of France. In what is now referred to as the historic “Paris Tasting,” the Stag's Leap Wine Cellars 1973 S.L.V. Cabernet Sauvignon took top honors among the reds, triumphing over two first-growth and other renowned wines of Bordeaux. The surprise win was covered by TIME magazine and picked up by media around the world. The story of “The Judgment of Paris” brought international recognition to the Napa Valley and to Stag's Leap Wine Cellars.

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For further information:
Kari Leitch
425/415-3673
kari.leitch@smwe.com