Profiles in wine: Mia Stornetta, winery relations manager, Atlas Vineyard Management

Mia Stornetta has always been passionate about agriculture.

Born and raised in Sonoma County, Stornetta is a fifth-generation member of the Stornetta family on her father’s side, and a fifth generation member of the Leveroni family on her mother’s side — two Northern California families involved in both dairy and wine grape growing for over 100 years.

As winery relations manager for Atlas Vineyard Management, a Napa-based company that develops and manages vineyards in California and Oregon, Stornetta feels right at home.

“The best part of my job is that I get to work outside and enjoy the beauty of where we live,” said Stornetta, who was named a Forty Under 40 winner in 2021 by the North Bay Business Journal. “Also, I always need a challenge, so the chaos of vineyard management suits me very well!”

Stornetta first became involved in agriculture during her youth when her mother taught her how to prune grapevines. From there, she went on to compete in the inaugural Sonoma County Youth Pruning Competition and Viticulture Challenge, participating every year until she aged out at 20 years old.

Today, Stornetta is current chair of the competition, which was the brainchild of the late Saralee McClelland Kunde, a Sonoma County wine industry icon and supporter of children in agriculture.

“Saralee was extremely supportive of everything I did in agriculture,” Stornetta said. “She really wanted to see children succeed. The competition gave me great exposure to the agriculture industry, which is such an important part of our community. As current chair, I feel like I’ve come full circle.”

Stornetta, who comes from a long line of dairy farmers, also tried her hand at showing dairy cows through 4-H but says it was a lot of (milking) work for very little return —especially considering she couldn’t sell the cows. From there, she moved on to selling market sheep, but that didn’t stick either.

It wasn’t until Stornetta attended Cal Poly San Luis Obispo for agriculture business and soil science, then completed a viticulture internship at E. & J. Gallo, that she realized her home was in the wine industry.

After joining Joel Gott Wines as a viticulture technician in 2015, Stornetta moved into grower relations, before landing at Atlas Vineyard Management in 2019.

As winery relations manager, she sells wine grapes to buyers in Sonoma, Napa and Oregon, while also managing the logistics of harvest and facilitating contract negotiations.

“Because I come from a family of farmers, I feel like I can really relate to our grape growers on a different level,” Stornetta said. “I understand where they’re coming from.”

As for living in Sonoma County, Stornetta says she finds a sense of comfort in the agriculture community, which is an integral part of her family heritage.

“It’s very tight-knit community,” Stornetta said. “And that’s really beautiful.”

Three questions for Mia Stornetta, Winery Relations Manager, Atlas Vineyard Management

Question What’s your favorite wine to drink from Sonoma County?

Answer: Pinot noir is my absolute favorite, especially from the Petaluma Gap or Sonoma Coast.

Q: What do you like to do in your free time?

A: I’m a huge fan of team sports. Right now I’m on an indoor soccer team and love to play pickleball. It’s a great way to stay active.

Q: Tell us something a lot of people don’t know about you.

A: I’m actually really good at sabering Champagne!

You can reach Staff Writer Sarah Doyle at 707-521-5478 or sarah.doyle@pressdemocrat.com.