Award-Winning winemakers preserve Wisconsin’s agricultural landscape
By Gerald Dlubala
The Wisconsin wine industry is a growing sector that relies on cold-hardy hybrid grape varieties and fruit wines to overcome a cold, humid climate unsuitable for traditional European wine grapes. We would like to introduce you to Botham Vineyards and Winery.
“This is very much a family operation, and I have the good fortune to be able to work alongside my mother and father in a wonderful line of work,” said Mills Botham, second-generation winemaker and Chief Operating Officer of Botham Vineyards and Winery in Barneveld, Wisconsin, part of the Madison, Wisconsin, Metropolitan Area.
Peter Botham founded Botham Vineyards and Winery in 1989, but to get the whole story of this award-winning winery that features spectacular views among its agricultural landscape, you must go back to Mills’ grandfather, Richard Botham, who originally purchased the property back in the 1960s.
“My grandfather grew up on a farm in Lancaster, Wisconsin,” said Mills. “He was a surgeon by profession, but even with that, he still wanted to be involved in something agricultural. So, it was in the 60s that he bought this farm, which is now the vineyard, along with four contiguous farms around our property. Those other four are now in the Nature Conservancy.”
Richard Botham converted those farms from dairy operations to beef cattle operations. He oversaw bigger picture duties like buying and selling cattle, but Botham employed families to live on the farms and manage the day-to-day cattle farming operations.
“In the summers growing up, my dad and his siblings lived in Madison but spent their summers working on the cattle farms helping out with the wrangling, operations, and all related things,” said Mills. “They’d live on the farms during the week and return to Madison for the weekend. That’s how my dad initially got acclimated to an agricultural approach to life. After he graduated from college, he lived on the East Coast, holding different and interesting positions like commercial draftsperson, clothing salesperson, and high-end audio and security systems. He eventually made his way to a vineyard just outside of Baltimore, and the way my dad tells the story is that he was there all of two weeks when he decided that the vineyard and winery lifestyle was what he wanted to do with his life. In the late 1980s, my dad reached out to my grandfather, who had scaled back his beef cattle business dramatically and was renting out most of his farmland for row cropping. My dad worked out a deal on some land and ended up buying what was a run-down farm desperately needing some attention at that time. He converted what was left from the row crop and beef cattle operation into a vineyard. We’ve been here ever since.”
Vineyard Reflects Wisconsin Climate and Consumer Demand
“Our vineyard is currently about eight acres,” said Mills. “And currently we grow two different varietals, Marechal Foch and Léon Millot. At one time, our vineyard was bigger, but we’ve scaled back a bit in recent years as the demand for French hybrid grown wines has come down a little bit. Additionally, my dad is getting older and is not as vigorous a farmer as he used to be, which makes it a bit easier for us to manage. Our two main varietals are cold-hardy and quick ripening, so they do very well here in the Wisconsin climate. They just fit our shortened growing season, and we still have a good number of our oldest, original plantings from the 80s. We’ve added as necessary, but for the most part, our vineyard is very old and very well established, especially when talking about Wisconsin standards.
“Dad and I run the majority of the operation and take care of all vineyard duties,” said Mills. “That includes the main agricultural duties, tending to the vineyard, winemaking, and managing the business and grounds. Dad doesn’t have a formal viticultural degree or anything like that. Instead, he learned on the job alongside other winemakers out east and back here in Wisconsin. They taught him the ropes, which he passed on to me. Mom oversees administrative operations as well as marketing, PR, and graphic design. She is instrumental to our business, but she also has other businesses and employment. We also have a wonderful crew of tasting room staff that helps us on weekends, but for full-time employees, it’s just my dad and me.”
Production Fluctuates with Demand and Trends
“Our production is all on site,” said Mills. “But we can’t grow everything here. Some vines don’t or can’t grow here in Wisconsin. Anything we can grow here, we do, and anything we can’t grow here, we get the juice for working through quality brokers. We do make the wines here, everything from fermentation through production through bottling, putting out 10-12 thousand gallons annually on average. That number fluctuates, however. We meter how much we make based on the previous year’s sales and the estimates we see for the next year, including what we see as industry trends and what is and isn’t selling well.”
Botham Vineyards and Winery currently feature 13 wines. The volume of each wine produced depends on consumer demand and interest. Big Stuff Red is their flagship, and was Mills’ nickname as a child.
“Big Stuff Red is a semi-dry red that we have been making for quite a while,” said Mills. “We serve it chilled, which is admittedly a bit unusual for a red wine, but we find that it’s a little more flavorful that way versus room temperature. It’s a blend of Foch that we grow here and wine from the Finger Lakes region of New York.
“It’s certainly our best seller, and the wine that we’ve been known for the last 20-25 years, but we stand by everything we make,” said Mills. “We believe that our wines are some of the best in the state, and our awards history backs that up. I credit my dad, who is the primary winemaker and vastly more experienced than I am. He’s been at it for 30+ years.”
Botham Vineyards and Winery have over 150 medals, accolades, and awards that can be seen adorning the walls of their tasting room. Botham believes this is a true testament to the care and artistry that go into crafting their wines. Botham Vineyards is the only Wisconsin winery to have twice earned a double gold medal on an estate-grown wine in international competition. Their Big Stuff Red is a two-time, double gold medal winner at the San Francisco International Wine Competition. And that’s just one example of the exemplary quality of the Botham wine collection. Their top sellers are distributed within Wisconsin, but to experience their whole portfolio, you should visit their picturesque location.
Guests Enjoy the Landscape Views and Personalized Service
“Our property is gorgeous with a spectacular vibe,” said Mills. “Especially when everything is blooming and coming in. That’s not by accident. We work extremely hard to keep it looking the way it does. Our tasting room is inside the original 1904 agricultural barn. We have tastings, live music, and a robust public and private event business. We offer an excellent, personable staff able to talk and engage with our guests and come up with personalized tastings to suit everyone’s likes.
“We want the visitor experience to be personal and personable,” added Mills. “We don’t just pour you a flight of four or five wines and send you on your merry way. I talk with and engage our guests. I enjoy telling them about our wines. I’ll pour the glasses one at a time, hopefully finding something they genuinely enjoy. It’s rare that someone cannot find at least one or two of our wines to enjoy. All our wines are excellent, but we’ll take the time to find what suits every visitor’s tastes.”
Mills tells The Grapevine Magazine that Botham Vineyards and Winery does not have an on-site catering kitchen. Instead, they offer premade snacks to supplement their lineup of wines, including Wisconsin’s excellent block cheese and sausage choices.
Host Your Event or Special Occasion Indoors, Outdoors, or Both
“Although we will never move away from our excellent and storied wines, we are pushing our capacity to host in-demand events, including weddings,” said Mills. “We’re working to be an excellent and viable option for events with the capability and capacity to offer a choice between indoor and outdoor spaces. I’m always on site whenever we have a wedding or something big going on, just in case something weird happens. Fortunately, incidents like that are infrequent, but it’s good to have someone here to work personally and directly with the event organizers and can help when the occasion is warranted.”
Whether it’s an intimate wedding ceremony, reception, rehearsal dinner, family celebration, or any special occasion, Botham Vineyards and Winery provides a one-of-a-kind vineyard venue with both indoor and outdoor options in their historic barn or beneath their ancient oaks surrounded by a picturesque vineyard landscape.
“We’ll bring your vision for your special occasion to life,” said Mills. “We also host company retreats, business luncheons and outings, team gatherings, baby and bridal showers, anniversaries, birthday celebrations, and more. We’ll often have a wedding ceremony outside under our iconic huge oak tree, and then a reception in the barn, which is covered and out of the sun and wind, but still able to provide that summer ambiance. It’s a beautiful space in the unrenovated part of the barn with exposed beams, old woodwork, and historical architecture.”
It’s a Wonderful Life
“It really is a wonderful and fun line of work where I get to meet and talk with a lot of really stellar people and friendly folks who are genuinely interested in our products,” said Mills. “Many times, we become friends, and those friends become supporters of our brand. Our vineyard and winery are really wonderful places to be, and I honestly have no complaints or regrets.”
For more information or to schedule an event:
Botham Vineyards
and Winery
8180 Langberry Rd.
Barneveld, WI 53507
608-574-2162
