PAULA HARRELL
President & Founder
P. Harrell Wines was founded by winemaker and San Francisco native, Paula J. Harrell. Paula received a BA in History & Spanish from UCLA, during which time she studied abroad in Madrid, Spain, where her interest in wine began. After college, Paula began her career in Early Childhood Education before moving into the Mental Health field. For several years, she ran Young Women Arise, a comprehensive multi-service program for at-risk girls of color, that provided outpatient & school-based mental health and consultation case management and outreach. The program focused on building emotional wellness in children, youth, and families by providing treatment, education, consultation/capacity building and support.
During this time, Paula also began assisting her father with his real estate holdings; buying, selling and renting several properties in San Francisco.
Her next career step was in Asset & Property Management, working for large real estate design and development companies, which, along with her experiences with her father, piqued an interest in her to build her own real estate investment portfolio, as well as to become a business owner. Paula went on to pursue her MBA from San Francisco State University and has had a long standing career in Real Estate & Mortgage Finance, as well as many years of civic endeavors with film and special events. Throughout Paula’s career she has always had a love affair with wine.
Since the early 90’s, she’s made it her priority to learn everything she could about wine. She purchased a timeshare in Napa and spent all of her free time visiting wineries, gleaning knowledge, technique, and education from winemakers, taking classes, participating in blending sessions & immersing herself in the culture.
After years of engaging with wine culture as a hobby, her great passion and appreciation for all things wine led her to finally start her own private label in November 2015.
Paula is the daughter of an immigrant mother from Panama, who met and married her Oklahoma-born, father in San Francisco. Her parents raised her and her 4 siblings, built a series of thriving residential care facilities in San Francisco and over the years, brought additional family members from Panama to a new life in northern California. “My wines are an overall tribute to my family’s legacy, its dedication to community, friendship, cultural heritage & one another. And In paying homage I have named my first wines after residences and properties of ours in San Francisco that hold special meaning to me”
Named for Paula’s childhood home on Santa Ana Avenue, Three Fifteen is a full bodied & fruit driven Zinfandel, supported by layers of vanilla, cinnamon, clove and a hint of white pepper. Haight Street, named for a property her father built the year she was born, is a Dry Riesling opening with a bouquet of peach blossom and passion fruit on the nose, with a palate full of citrus fruit, minerality, lemongrass and honeydew.
WINERY TEAM MEMBERS
WINERY TEAM MEMBERS
NICOLE FITT
Director of Operations
Nicole Fitt has more than 14 years of experience with strategic and communication leadership within the procurement and hospitality industries. Fitt provides overall guidance for all P.Harrell Wines operations, communications and charitable functions that support the company’s mission, vision, values, and strategic objectives.
Before joining P.Harrell Wines, Fitt worked for Gap, Inc. in several capacities, negotiating and procuring printed materials and retail store fixtures for Old Navy, Old Navy Outlet, Gap and Banana Republic brands.
Fitt focused on implementing metrics to best manage inventory, cost savings, and service levels on project deliverables.
Fitt is involved with various non-profit organizations within the Sacramento/Bay Area. She attended Hampton University and earned her Bachelor of Arts degree from California State University, Sacramento. She lives in the Sacramento Area with her husband and three amazing daughters.
