April 18th, 2022 – Matthew Sharp has been named General Manager at Shafer Vineyards, a winery that has produced classic Napa Valley wines for more than 40 years. Sharp steps into the position after five years as Shafer’s commercial director overseeing all aspects of domestic and global sales.
“Bringing Matthew into the business at this level is an exciting moment,” says Doug Shafer, who took over the business from his father, John Shafer, in 1994. “He steps into the position with an enormous portfolio of industry experience and is poised to move Shafer into a great new chapter.”
Before joining Shafer Vineyards, Sharp had represented top luxury brands including Chateau Lafite Rothschild and had developed global accounts at Pasternak Wine Imports as well as brand management at The Henry Wine Group, among others.
The Shafer team is also welcoming Jake Watson as National Sales Director.
“We could not be happier to welcome Jake to the team,” says Matthew Sharp. “He brings an ideal set of experience, skills, and insight and we look forward to introducing him to our distributor, retail, and restaurant partners.”
Watson brings a more than a decade of experience in fine wine sales to Shafer. Most recently he was Southwest Regional Manager with Folio Fine Wine Partners, with prior experience at The Estates Group, Young’s Market Company and American Wine and Spirits.
Shafer Vineyards is winery located in Napa Valley’s Stags Leap District that owns and farms more than 200 acres of vineyards, sources for Shafer’s Red Shoulder Ranch Chardonnay, TD-9, One Point Five, Relentless, and Hillside Select wines. The Shafer legacy stretches back to its first vintage of Cabernet Sauvignon in 1978.
