RLS Middle School visits V. Sattui Winery in longstanding partnership

RLS Middle School recently continued its long tradition of visiting V. Sattui Winery to learn about the agriculture, science and marketing of wine.

Eighth-graders visited the barrel room, bottling line and vineyards of the St. Helena winery as staff members talked about their jobs.

Sattui’s relationship with RLS goes back about 20 years, when a Napa Valley Vintners program paired schools with wineries. RLS students have been visiting Sattui ever since. The winery has offered a few summer internships and faithfully donated to the Give Big fundraiser.

Castello di Amorosa, also owned by Dario Sattui, has welcomed seventh-graders who are studying medieval history and culture.

The March 27 visit to V. Sattui was a way of helping students explore career opportunities, teacher Jennifer Marinace said.

“We also wanted the students to see that what they learn in their core academic classes is going to be useful for them in their careers,” Marinace said.

In connection with language arts, wine club manager Stephanie Price told students how V. Sattui communicates with customers via phone, mailers, social media, and in person at the winery. She emphasized the importance of always sending out or posting publish-ready work, as well as how to write a social media post and pair it with a picture to portray the brand.

In connection with behavioral science, Marketplace buyer Kellie Martin talked about her marketing work and how she chooses, sources, prices and displays merchandise in the store to reinforce the Sattui brand and help customers find items they want.

A winemaking team talked about the science of wine, let students taste unfermented grape juice, showed what yeast looks like under a microscope, and demonstrated how the bottling like works, and talked about sugar and Brix levels.

In the vineyard, workers talked about the career paths that led them to Sattui, as well as viticultural concepts like rootstock, soils and varietals.

Principal Andrew Ryan said the relationship between RLS and V. Sattui offers students “the opportunity to apply and experience what is learned in the classroom to what’s done in the real world.”

He called it “a great representation of how much this community cares about its youth, their future and the future of St. Helena.”