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The people
Barry Waitte, Proprietor
Barry Waitte, a native Northern Californian, developed his love of the wine country during visits and vacations to Napa Valley with his parents, and since developed a passion for the area and wine making. The years preceding moving to Napa Valley were filled with more than 20 years of working in the investment and technology industries. In 1999, he was able to begin his pursuit of his passion for wine, along with another obsession of horses and endurance (long-distance) horse racing with the purchase of two Yountville properties that now have vineyards and stables. Barry is also engaged in numerous philanthropic campaigns through his namesake family foundation, The Waitte Foundation, supporting organizations such as the St. Helena Hospital Foundation, Boys and Girls Club of Napa and the Napa Education Foundation as well as Opportunity International, a world-wide micro-loan agency for the under-privileged. Barry is also a graduate of Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo and did continued studies in viticulture and enology at UC Davis. |
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jennifer nice, General Manager
A writer, editor and publisher by profession, she actually began her tenure at Tamber Bey in the stables as the endurance horse trainer, but also assisted with Tamber Bey’s marketing efforts, before taking over the management and administrative reins in April 2008. A graduate of California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, Jennifer brings a worldly knowledge from her travels to her job as well has boundless energy. Jennifer is an accomplished endurace rider and has competed successfully world-wide in 100 mile racing venues. Of her dual role as general manager and endurance horse trainer at Tamber Bey she says, “My days are filled with wine and horses … It's a lot of hard work, but what could be better?" |
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Mike Smith, Winemaker
Mike Smith started his winemaking career under the direction of Thomas Brown in 2001. Traveling from Portland, Oregon, Mike worked each crush free of charge to learn his craft. Following his third harvest, Mike accepted a full-time assistant position from Thomas and moved his family to St. Helena. Today, Mike continues to work with Thomas, most recently by taking over the winemaking for Tamber Bey’s Deux Chevaux Vineyard wines. His hands-on approach beginning in the vineyards, coupled his passion for wines and enthusiasm for the project, are felt all the way to the bottle, which showcases Mike's talents and stylistic "purist" approach to winemaking. Mike also makes wine under his own label, Myriad Cellars. |
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Thomas Brown, Consulting winemakerThomas Brown was born in Sumter, South Carolina, in 1972, a marginal vintage for wine, but a great year for humans. He developed an interest in wine while majoring in english and economics at the University of Virginia. Later, he expanded his knowledge of wines from all of the world’s great regions while working at All Seasons Wine Shop in Calistoga, located at the northern end of the Napa Valley. He worked the 1997 harvest for Kent Rasmussen before becoming an assistant winemaker for Ehren Jordan, winemaker at Turley Wine Cellars and consultant to a number of other high-profile California wineries. In 2000, Ehren signed an exclusive winemaking agreement with Turley and subsequently handed his clients to Thomas. Today, Thomas consults and for Outpost, Chiarello, Shrader, Casa Piena, in addition to his own Pinot Noir project "Rivers Marie". With the partnership with Barry and the Tamber Bey Yountville and Oakville vineyards, Thomas has created some of the most distinctive and inspired wines to come from the region. |
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Josh Clark, Viticulturist
Joshua T. Clark was born in Marysville, California, the heart and soul of Yuba County. His parents, Thomas and Laurie Clark, moved to Napa Valley in 1976, when Joshua was 2. In 1989, the Clarks purchased 117 acres, developing 20 into a high-quality Cabernet Sauvignon vineyard. Like his parents, Joshua attended California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, graduating with a BS in agricultural engineering technology and a minor in agricultural business. Following graduation, he worked for Hames Valley Vineyards and Vineyard Professional Services in Paso Robles. After managing development, maintenance and harvest for VPS during the ’97 and ’98 vintages, Joshua moved back the Napa Valley to take over his father’s vineyard management company, Clark Vineyard Management. The company specializes in the management of small, high-quality vineyards, and it also grows top-quality fruit for some of Napa Valley’s more established producers. In 1993, the family produced its first vintage under the Clark-Claudon label. |
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Hershey and The HorsesAll the horses in the Tamber Bey herd are registered Arabians specifically bred for competitive long-distance riding. LV Cambridge (seen here) with Barry as the rider was the 2005 National HW Division Champion, and was a member of the 2005 Gold Medal Team for the North American Championships, and competed for a position on the 2006 US Equestrian Endurance team. Barry is now bringing Tiki up as a young competitor (pictured below left). Click on the Horsin' Around page under News & Events to read our race stories and keep up on all our horse activities. The Tamber Bey Horses
And lastly, if you have ever visited the Tamber Bey Estate, you will have meet, been greeted by and probably barked at by Hershey, our forever young minded chocolate labador. Hershey is our 'ambassador of happy' here at Tamber Bey, and takes his place among the many winery dogs here in Napa Valley.
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