Joseph
Joseph Lazzerini was born in Los Angeles and grew up in Southern California’s
San Fernando Valley. He attended North Hollywood High School and later
attended the University of California Riverside. In 1972 his father purchased
a beer distributorship, Advance Beverage, in Bakersfield CA. Struggling
between becoming a professional golfer and joining the family business was a
difficult decision to make - he chose the later. Joseph’s father
was adamant on having his two sons’ start from the bottom of the business
and work their way up. The boys did everything from cleaning draught lines
to driving delivery trucks. Eventually, Joseph was in charge of inventory
control and later promoted to Vice President of Operations. In 1988 the
three Lazzerini’s had the opportunity to purchase the Anheuser-Busch distributorship
in Solano County which they renamed Tri-Eagle Beverage. In 1997 they acquired
the Napa AB distributorship which they consolidated into one company. Joseph
oversees that company which is based in Fairfield, CA. With the Napa Valley
now being his territory, Joseph’s love for great wine began to grow. How
great would it be to have his own creation to share with his family and friends? Through
a close friend he found a great winemaker, Stephen Burch, who is a graduate from
the University of California Davis with a Bachelor Science Viticulture and Enology
degree. Joseph hired Stephen to make 1000 cases of wonderful Cabernet.
The wine couldn’t have turned out better – soft, ripe, easy drinking
with a lovely balance of fruit and oak, everything he had hoped for. The
next vintage is soon to come. Joseph’s partner Tami operates the
company from their home in Lake Berryessa. The wine business has given
Joseph a better understanding and relationship with his Napa retailers, which
in turn is also great for his beer business. |
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Tami
Tami grew up in the Bay Area about 25 miles south of the Napa Valley. Starting
at age 16 she followed in her father’s footsteps and became a volunteer
firefighter and later Emergency Medical Technician. She volunteered her
services for 10 great years. Out of high school she went to the College
of Marin for four years to study Stenography. After college, she moved
north to beautiful Lake Berryessa in Napa County. It didn’t take
her long to become intrigued with the wine industry and left court reporting
behind. She quickly got a job with Joseph Phelps Vineyards giving public
and private tours and tastings. After taking numerous wine related courses
she decided to move from the tasting room to the cellar. There she got
a year and a half of hands on experience and did everything from driving a fork
lift to racking the barrels. She then ventured on to work for a great family
owned winery, Beaucanon Estate. She worked for 6 years as Office
Manger and dabbled in graphic design. She learned the compliance end of
the wine business as well as create their point of sale material and wine labels. She
really enjoyed the creative design part of her job but didn’t get to spend
as much time on projects as she had wished. A great job opportunity
came along at Tri-Eagle Beverage, a beer distributor, where she could be a full-time
Graphic Designer. Though leaving behind an industry that she had grown
so fond of was a hard decision to make, she felt it would all work out in the
end. She was right. There she later fell in love with Joseph Lazzerini
and a new adventure had begun. They now have this wonderful wine business
that is run out of their home in Lake Berryessa. She now has the opportunity
to use all those skills she knows and loves. Tami is Joseph Anthony’s
Office Manager, Director of Sales and Marketing and Graphic Designer. She
has also started her own graphic design company called Lake View Graphics. Working
from home gives Tami the opportunity to spend more time with her wonderful 5
year old son, Cody. She also enjoys wakeboarding, snowboarding and cooking
for her family and friends. |
