Battaglini Winery Archives - Wine Country Getaways

Book Clubs are Meeting in Wine Country

The Mills Book Club was established in 1989 by Librarian Kris, long before book clubs were as popular as they are now. Today, book clubs are flourishing among friends and neighbors all over the world. Perhaps it was the Mills Book Club that set the trend for book club proliferation! The Mills Book Club is setting another trend these days, holding a book club meeting in wine country. The Mills Book Club has been doing this for the past six years.

It began in 2012 when Mills Book Club member Pat thought it would be fun to hold a book club meeting at her summer getaway home in Healdsburg, CA. The book club enjoyed the event so much that they decided to make this an annual affair and host the meeting at a winery. It seems that to sip wine and discuss books in the peace of wine country brings much joy to the book club. The club picks small wineries, preferably family-owned, and ones where the winemaker or winery owner has time to meet with the book club.

The Mills Book Club wineries

The Battaglini Winery is a terrific winery stop in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County. Owner and winemaker Joe Battaglini gave us a walking tour and showed us 135-year-old Zinfandel and Petite Sirah vines. His small but quaint tasting room is filled with memorabilia and good cheer. While we were busy tasting, a couple visiting from Florida came into the tasting room. Upon leaving, the woman said “This is so much fun. Yesterday we were in Napa at a snobby tasting room where the winery was selling $100 Cabernet. Who needs a hundred-dollar bottle of wine?” Certainly not the Mills Book Club members!

Joe Battaglini with Mills Book Club member Mike in the vineyards

The Mills Book Club meets once a month, and members are mostly retired teachers from Mills High School in Millbrae. A few still teach there and a few others are close friends who wanted to be part of the book club environment. In case you are wondering what the Mills Book Club reads, the following is a list of recent books they have read.

Latest Choice:

Recent favorites:

Our wine country getaway to Battaglini Winery

Battaglini Estate Winery

Battaglini Winery is a hidden gem in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County. In this wine region there are many gorgeous wineries, fancy tasting rooms, and state-of-the art wine making facilities. At the Battaglini Winery, things are done the old-fashioned way. Italian native Joe Battaglini is the owner and winemaker. Joe and his wife Lucia purchased the then-abandoned winery in 1988 and produced their first vintage in 1994. Joe Battaglini learned how to make wine from his father as he was growing up in Lucca, Italy. Even the vines at Battaglini are old fashioned, and by that I mean 127 years old. There are 25 acres of these vines consisting of old Zinfandel and Petit Syrah. These 127-year-old vines are still producing, although the yields are small. The fruit is concentrated, with flavors that produce wonderful wine.

Owner and winemaker Joe Battaglini

127 year-old Petite Sirah

The tasting room is small and funky and adorned with memorabilia from Lucca. Joe usually pours in the tasting room, and if you ask you can get a quick tour of the old vineyards. The vines are fascinating to look at. Joe even has names for a few of them. What a kick to be out in the fields with Joe Battaglini.

Joe opened several Zinfandel wines for us dating from 2002 to 2009. We were amazed at how well the older vintages held up, rich and delicious. Yes, they had mellowed, but the fruit was still there to enjoy and savor. Joe also makes an unfiltered Chardonnay and an oaky Chardonnay. They were good but not as impressive as the Zin and Petite. Zinfandel and Petite Sirah wines are aged in a mix of new and old French barrels for 18 months. Once bottled, the wines sit for 2 years before being released.

Joe has recently begun to experiment with Pinot Noir. After all the Russian River Valley is famous for Pinot Noir, so why not try and see what he can do with this grape? The vines were recently planted, so we won’t be able to taste any Pinot Noir for a few years.

Other Nearby Wineries

For more wine tasting, leave Battaglini Winery, make a left turn and continue along Piner Road to Olivet Road. Here you’ll find DeLoach, Harvest Moon, Hook & Ladder and others. Olivet Lane Wine Trail

Lodging and Restaurants

For this wine country getaway, we stayed at the Vintners Inn in Santa Rosa just a short hop from Battaglini Winery and the Olivet Road wineries. We ate dinner at the Jon Ash Restaurant that is located in the Vintners Inn. There is also plenty of other lodging in Santa Rosa and a little further north in Healdsburg.