Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/759555
december 2016 / the tasting panel / 79 J ust outside Lodi while driving east on Highway 12, you might want to slow down to take in a bit of history. Giant 50-foot power poles line the road like sentries, industrial parks surround a site of old, head-trained Zinfandel vines and just past the railroad tracks that border the seemingly out-of-place vineyard, sit opposite two relics that give tribute to Lodi's long winemaking history—the remnants of the Roma Wine Company on the left and the oldest operating winery in Lodi on the right. In 2002, Rudy Maggio and the Reynolds cousins, Rocky and Don, purchased the old East Side Winery cooperative established in 1934. The historic winery was renamed Oak Ridge Winery, a family-owned partner- ship between the Maggio, Reynolds and (since 2010) Dondero families. Rudy Maggio and his two daughters, Shelly and Raquel, manage the day-to- day operations. Together, Oak Ridge Winery has successfully expanded their portfolio of brands and now produces nearly 500,000 cases of quality, afford- able Lodi wines distributed across three continents. When the East Side Winery coopera- tive was founded in 1934, there were roughly 130 grape growers involved. Known primarily for making brandy, the growers collectively produced wines from the grapes they couldn't sell and shared the profits. Yet by the time the winery was sold, the co-op idea had faded and the business was no longer viable. Rudy Maggio, once a member of the cooperative, jumped on the opportunity to purchase the historic winery at auction with his partners Don and Rocky Reynolds. Maggio is a third- generation farmer whose grandparents planted their first vineyard in Lodi in 1925. He made the decision to transi- tion from being strictly a grape grower to owning a winery in order to secure a market for his fruit and avoid relying on the wineries each year to purchase. "When they want them, they want them, and when they don't, they don't," says Maggio of selling grapes to other wineries. Owning his own winery is "more of a guarantee; you know you've got a home for your grapes." Fourth Generation Maggio's daughters, Shelly Maggio- Woltkamp and Raquel Maggio-Casity, are fourth-generation growers who play integral roles in the family busi- ness. Maggio-Woltkamp farms 25 acres of head-trained Zinfandel vines planted in 1942 and manages public relations for Oak Ridge. Maggio-Casity, who also farms 240 acres of vines, graduated in 1995 from the University of the Pacific with a degree in business administra- tion. Her intent was always to return to the family's farming business and she now works as Controller for Oak Ridge, The Maggio family (from left to right): Raquel Maggio-Casity, Controller; Rudy Maggio, Owner; and Shelly Maggio-Woltkamp, Public Relations. Not only is Oak Ridge Winery family owned, the Maggio family is fully present in day-to-day operations, which has been key to their success.