Food & Beverage Industry Veteran to Lead Iconic Family – Owned Winery
St. Helena, CA, May 24, 2018 – Joseph Phelps Vineyards is pleased to announce the appointment of Clarice Turner as President. Ms. Turner’s leadership expertise and extensive global experience in the food and beverage industry are an ideal combination to assure the internationally respected, family-owned winery’s continued success.
Ms. Turner is a proven senior management executive with a successful track record of leading dynamic organizations through generational transformations. Her appointment signals a continued focus on maintaining family ownership and a tradition of uncompromising quality.
“We are delighted to welcome Clarice to Joseph Phelps Vineyards. She brings exceptional leadership skills which will take us to new heights in the world of luxury wines,” stated Bill Phelps, Executive Chairman of Joseph Phelps Vineyards.
Prior to joining Phelps, Ms. Turner founded and was CEO of Carneros Associates, a strategic advisory firm guiding vision, strategy, and culture for businesses in transition. She has served as a senior management executive of best in class companies in the food and beverage industry, as well as gained meaningful experience with small and medium sized family businesses, always with the thread of wine present.
“I am honored and absolutely thrilled to join one of the world’s most iconic wineries, with the first Napa Valley red blend of Bordeaux varieties, Insignia, and many other contributions to the wine industry,” said Ms. Turner.
Turner will remain an advisory board director for Delicato Family Vineyards, serving on the Culinary Institute of America Society of Fellows, advisory board director for Women of the Vine & Spirits, and Emeritus board director for the National Restaurant Association.
Ms. Turner is an avid wine collector and ninth generation Northern Californian. She earned an MBA concentrating in International Business, and a BA in Geology from San Francisco State University. She also attended Fudan University in Shanghai, China where she studied Mandarin Chinese.
The hiring of Ms. Turner was a result of the Phelps family’s work with wine industry executive search company The Cypress Group.
About Joseph Phelps Vineyards
Joseph Phelps Vineyards is a family-owned winery committed to crafting world class, estate-grown wines. Founded in 1973 when Joe Phelps purchased a former cattle ranch near St. Helena, the winery now controls and farms 390 acres of vines in Napa Valley on eight estate vineyards in St. Helena, the Stags Leap District, Oakville, Rutherford, Oak Knoll District, Carneros and South Napa. In pursuit of an ideal location to grow Pinot Noir and Chardonnay, in 1999 the Phelps family purchased land near the town of Freestone on the western Sonoma Coast, planted 100 acres of vineyards, and built a dedicated winery. Phelps is best known for its flagship wine, Insignia, a Napa Valley blend of red Bordeaux varieties first produced in 1974. The winery offers a variety of tasting and culinary experiences seven days a week by prior appointment. More information can be found at www.josephphelps.com.
