People are our purpose.
OUR PHILOSOPHY PLACES PEOPLE AT THE CENTER OF BUSINESS
Creating a culture of inclusivity, accountability, and personal development for all of our employees is top of mind. We work closely with our business managers to ensure our practices remain in alignment with these principles, and with the changing environmental challenges we face on our planet.
MEET OUR TEAM โธ
Hallie Whyte
MANAGING DIRECTOR
Hallie is our companyโs guiding beacon. She works closely with Tony Soter to direct all aspects of our Winemaking company and future business development. Her natural ability to mitigate conflict and translate vision make her the perfect leader for our dynamic company.
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Hallie Whyte
A NATURAL LEADER
A native of Oregonโs Willamette Valley, Hallie earned her stripes locally in the trenches of fine dining and wine sales. Following stints at Lange Estate Winery and Dominio IV, she was an early addition to Soter Vineyardsโ hospitality team in 2011, playing an integral role in the development of a then-infant wine club and consumer sales program. Hallie has grown both personally and professionally, broadening her experience in the DTC and national sales channels to now overseeing all aspects of the company at Soter Vineyards. Fluent in Spanish and mathematics, her expansive resumรฉ and analytical expertise make her a trusted contributor to important conversations facing the Oregon wine industry and our local community. She lends her support as a board member of the International Pinot Noir Celebration and Visit McMinnville.
Chris Fladwood
DIRECTOR OF WINEMAKING & VITICULTURE
Chris Fladwood is responsible for our entire winemaking operation. He oversees the production of every wine we make from our Planet Oregon and Origin Series wines, to our limited production sparkling wines and estate Pinot Noirs. Chrisโ commitment to quality, focus, and precision are hallmarks of his work, and our wines are a reflection of his relentless devotion to the craft of winemaking.
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Jess Arnold
ASSOCIATE winemaker
Jess brings an inquisitive and worldly perspective to our winemaking program. Jess also plays an active role in our Biodynamic viticulture program, and contributes her time and skill to sales and trade events throughout the year.
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Antonio Verduzco
RANCH MANAGER
Antonio oversees all farm and vineyard operations at Soter Vineyards which includes our Estate Vineyards spread across the Northern Willamette Valley. He tends our fruits and vegetable plots at MSR, oversees our animal husbandry program, and ensures our regenerative farming practices extend to every aspect of our property from our honeybees, to oak restoration projects.
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Julia Bandy
DIRECTOR OF CONSUMER SALES & MARKETING
With an affinity for Champagne and language, Julia deftly guides the vision of Soter Vineyards through all Marketing and Direct Sales Channels. Her natural leadership abilities and inclination for all things gastronomic make her the perfect spokesperson for Soter Vineyards.
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Jamie Kotler
DIRECTOR OF EXPERIENCE
Jamie Kotler, our Director of Experience and intrepid leader, guides our team with empathy, grace and poise. Her keen eye and seemingly effortless management style is infused into every aspect of our hospitality program.
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Rachel Pendragon Gibeau
HOSPITALITY & EDUCATION MANAGER
Rachel Pendragon Gibeau is our resident wine educator and hospitality expert. She proficiently leads our team and clients through genuine and thoughtful tasting experiences.
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Autumn Kauss
DIRECTOR of MEMBERSHIP & OUTREACH
With a passion for sustainability and relationship building, Autumn helps our team provide the best experience for our members and customers alike. Her background in hospitality, marketing, and non-profit development has seasoned her skills and made her the perfect ambassador for Soter.
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Clayton Allen
HEAD CHEF
Clayton strives to embrace the seasonality of the farm at every turn. His restraint and thoughtful approach to cooking lets the food and wine take center stage.
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Vanessa Schmidt
EVENT MANAGER
Kurt Johnson
DIRECTOR OF GLOBAL SALES
Kurtโs 20+ years of experience in the wholesale wine business makes him the perfect leader of our National Sales team where he oversees the sale of our wines in over 40 states. His relationship with Tony Soter began in California over two decades ago where he worked for Tony on the now iconic Etude brand. His innate gifts of storytelling and building relationships are reflected in our companyโs reputation and breadth of distribution.
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Jim Sadlon
REGIONAL SALES MANAGER
โI love how personal, subjective, and collaborative wine is. It brings together a wide range of philosophies and beliefs from people all over the world. There is no single ladder to climb in the wine industry, but instead, we parachute in from any direction, often times because passion guided us here.โ
Mary
Sarles-Hoeschen
CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER
Mary is an incredibly deft business manager with a breadth of experience in everything from restaurant management, mergers and acquisitions, farming, manufacturing, and wholesale and retail sales. Her diverse resumรฉ, fondness for food and wine, and desire to work with intensely talented leaders are most befitting of her role at Soter Vineyards.
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Progress
We are A wine company attuned with the reality of the future
At Soter Vineyards, we are committed to proactive long-term accountability to a triple bottom line, which includes our product, our people, and our Planet.
