Library wines

Book Society (Berkeley)

GOODS & SERVICES • FOUND Shop

Berkeley’s Book Society is the latest in a wave of Bay Area bookstore bars that includes Clio’s in Oakland, Golden Sardine in SF, and Bad Animal in Santa Cruz.

This one bets big on wine, with a fancy Italian-made dispenser system designed for self-serve pours. There are eight monthly rotating wines on tap — from nonalcoholic to whites to reds — accessible via a wine card, which is handed out with a glass upon entry. Patrons select from a 1-oz taste, half glass, or full glass. Each wine has also been paired with a suggested reading, with past selections including Stanley Tucci’s What I Ate in One Year paired with an Italian dolcetto. A bit gimmicky, yes, but fun.

The Art Deco-designed shop is stacked high with books curated by owner Laura Guzman that span fiction, nonfiction, cooking, and travel, with a focus on local authors. Soaring arches, herringbone wood floors, and floor-to-ceiling bookshelves — complete with a rolling ladder — evoke a private home library. Gold accents, fan wallpaper, and a large glass chandelier bump up the glam.

The late afternoon and evening crowds are here to drink wine and socialize, gathering on jewel-toned velvet couches and chairs and occasionally browsing the shelves. Book sales are a bonus, or so it seems, and the owners appear perfectly content with that. Book Society is a bookstore, but more so, it’s a cool new place to hang out with friends over a glass of wine, surrounded by books and people who love books. It’s exactly what the neighborhood is craving. –Allison McCarthy

→ Book Society (Berkeley) • 2945 College Ave • Tue-Sun 11a-8p • Reserve (for book clubs and other small groups).