In the 1880s, at the ages of 19 and 16, Giuseppe Martinelli and Luisa Vellutini eloped from their small village in the Tuscany region of Italy, making their way to California looking for land to farm and start a winery. Giuseppe had been a winemaker/chemist in Italy and with his viticulture knowledge he was hired to plant a vineyard for a farmer in Forestville. Within two years he earned enough money to purchase land of his own. Working side by side on a 60+ degree slope, Giuseppe and Luisa planted a small area of Zinfandel and Muscat Alexandria vines, which later became known as our Jackass Hill vineyard. In 1918 Giuseppe died, leaving Luisa with four children, the winery and the vineyards. Their youngest son, Leno took on the sole responsibility of farming the Jackass Zinfandel vineyard from age 12 until he was 87 years old. Luisa lived another 21 years after Giuseppe died. She was very close to Leno and lived with him, his wife, Alma Bondi, and their two children Joyce and Lee, until she died.

The “Zio Tony Ranch” is named after Tony Bondi, who was the first in the Bondi family to be born on American soil. Zio Tony was the son of Paolo Antoni Bondi and Adele Gemma Cardellini, who emigrated from Italy in the early 1900’s and immediately set up farming potatoes. Zio Tony, Zio meaning ‘uncle’ in Italian, was a very charismatic man with a big booming voice who loved a good time. His broad handsome smile is still legendary in the old farming community of the Sebastopol Hills. Zio Tony was the entrepreneur of the family and began buying individual properties in the 1950’s and planting apple trees, eventually establishing the largest apple orchard in the county. The late 1960’s brought changes in tourists and a population growth that would drastically affect the production of agricultural products in the region. It became apparent to Uncle Tony that farming apples in this part of the world would have its eventual decline. So, he planted rootstock on which he planned to graft Pinot Noir cuttings. Zio Tony passed away in 1971 before his dream of becoming a grape grower was fulfilled.

When Leno Martinelli’s father, Giuseppe, died, Leno took over Giuseppe’s vineyards, Jackass Hill and Jackass Vineyard, at age 12. Leno was the youngest of 4 children by at least 10 years. His older brothers gave him “that really steep hill to farm”… because only a jackass would farm a hill that steep, 65 degrees. Leno farmed it with a horse and plow at age 12 (1918), then eventually buying a John Deere crawler in the 1960’s. He farmed Jackass Hill until he was 89 years old, (77 years). Leno made his own wine, grew apples, had a fabulously lush garden, was a sore loser at pinnacle and hunted the deer that ate his grapes. He was known to sew his own deep cuts shut with needle/pliers, and tan deer hides to make work gloves. He was the quintessential subsistence farmer, living off only what he grew or hunted. He lived a sustainable life before it was certifiable. Leno taught his son, Lee Sr., how to farm apples, prunes, grapes and make wine and grappa. Leno retired from farming at 89 years old, handing his lands over to his son, Lee Sr to farm. Lee Sr farms Jackass Hill today at 80 years old.

The Charles family has been farming our property on the far Sonoma Coast since 1860, for 6 generations, located just a mile inland from the ocean. This land was received as part of the Homestead Act of the 1860s in order to raise sheep. It has continued in the family for generations as a sheep ranch. At one point George, Carolyn’s father, had over 1 thousand head of sheep on 2 thousand acres of land. George and Martha would frequently move around Northern California to find the best grasslands for their sheep herds. In 1980, George decided to retire from the sheep ranching business and planted the second vineyard on the far Sonoma Coast. George used his horse the first few years to work the vineyards, instead of a tractor. It’s what he knew and it’s what he had. He planted Chardonnay grapes that are now bottled as our Charles Ranch Chardonnay.

Lee Martinelli, Sr. is the patriarch of Martinelli Winery, and the sole farmer of Jackass Hill. Jackass Hill, which is still home to the same vines that were first planted by his grandfather over 100 years ago, is known for having the steepest non-terraced vines in Sonoma County and was named because only a “jackass” would be foolish enough to farm it. “Everyone tells me Jackass Hill is too dangerous to farm, but I feel a responsibility to these vines. My father worked this vineyard every day for 75 years, and it has given so much to our family,” he says.

Born and raised in Sonoma County, Lee Sr. began working in his family’s vineyards and apple orchards at the age of six. He learned the value of hard work at a young age, sometimes having to work late into the night. “Even at the age of nine I was up working in the middle of the night. The Russian River Valley’s nighttime fog is great for grapes, but not very beneficial to sun-dried prunes, so I’d have to wake up at 2:00AM to pick them all up. It was the worst job, but years later it helped shape my own parenting philosophy.”

As an adult, Lee Sr.’s family encouraged him to choose a more lucrative career due to the unstable nature of farming. Thus, after marrying Carolyn, he went to work in electronics for five years at Forestville Transistor as a quality control administrator. While he initially enjoyed working inside an old winery building, there was no natural light and he felt detached from the natural elements. Nature was calling and with one child at home and another on the way, Lee Sr. chose to go back to school and start a new career.

Initially, Lee Sr. studied Agricultural Business and Plant Science at Chico State, but after assessing career and pay options, he opted to get his teaching credential from UC Davis in 1967. Upon returning to Sonoma County to teach at Santa Rosa High School as an agriculture instructor, Lee Sr. was informed that his father would soon retire. Lee Sr. decided he would step into the role of managing the family farming business, and for the next five years he taught during the week while spending his weekends farming 17 acres of apples and grapes, and raising cattle.

In 1973 when Lee Sr. took over his Uncle Tony Bondi’s apple orchards and vineyards, he retired from teaching to focus full-time on farming. “I knew all along I wanted to work outdoors. I knew it would mean longer hours and harder work, but that is the price to pay for satisfaction. I learned to love the sense of accomplishment after a long day of farming, and the freedom of being in control of my own destiny,” he says.

Over the next decade, Lee Sr. went on to farm 450 acres of apples and grapes while serving as a board member for organizations like the Santa Rosa Sotoyome Soil Conservation District, Sebastopol Co-Op Cannery, Forestville Elementary School and Sebastopol Apple Growers United. He also received numerous awards including Outstanding Young Farmer of the Year in 1978, an award which both of his sons would later receive.

In recent years, Lee Sr. has passed many of his responsibilities on to the fourth generation, which consists of his four children. He can finally find time to work on personal projects he’s been waiting to get to for 47 years. He recently purchased land near his home which he is fixing up, clearing out old wood and repairing roads. He is also restoring an old 1917 Hudson car which was originally purchased brand new by Giuseppe, as well as a two-horse surrey from the 1800s purchased by Louisa Martinelli upon Giuseppe’s death to provide her transportation to town. A lifelong hunter, Lee Sr. can now schedule trips during hunting season, which overlaps with the grape-growing season of August to October.

“It took me 47 years to finally give up some of my work responsibilities. I had to convince myself, but I feel freer. The more time I take off the more I want to do,” he says. Even so, Lee Sr., when asked if he’ll let one of his kids farm the Jackass Hill Vineyard, he responds with a twinkle in his ice blue eyes that he has no intentions of passing the reigns. He still enjoys finishing a day’s work in the vineyard, and opening up a bottle of the wine when the day is done to make sure the risk and sweat was all worth it. “It always is,’ he says

This 40-acre piece was originally purchased by Lee Martinelli Sr. because it butted up against the Charles/Dillon Ranch and he planned to hunt wild boar on this piece. In 1991 we met Helen Turley(world famous female winemaker) whose property bordered this parcel. After a friendly neighborly chat Helen said she needed a place to make wine and we needed a winemaker, so we hired her to start working for us in 1992. She walked all of our properties and when she saw this piece she remarked “this is a grand cru site for Pinot Noir.” Lee Sr. said “This is where I pig hunt.” She again said “This is a Grand Cru site for Pinot Noir.” Lee Sr. still responded about pig hunting there…she said “Lee put in the vineyard and the pigs will come.” She was right on both accounts. It is one of our most highly touted pinot noir vineyards and the wild pigs love to try to get into this vineyard.

Julianna Martinelli hails from the two-horse town of Forestville, California, situated in the lush rolling hills of the Russian River Valley. She is the fourth generation in her family to be involved in the wine business. Julianna grew up on Martinelli Road surrounded by one-hundred-year-old Zinfandel vineyards which were planted by her great-grandparents, Giuseppe & Luisa, in the late 1880s. She spent her childhood riding horses, raising sheep for 4-H, and fishing and swimming in the creek with her siblings and neighboring cousins.

Like the generation before, she began working in the vineyard at a young age. Julianna began the Sales and Marketing position for Martinelli Winery in 1993, while also writing the bi-annual newsletter. She traveled extensively for the winery, making relationships and initiating distribution to more than 30 states.

When she is not caring for one of her three grandchildren, Julianna still occasionally visits out of state markets and hosts wine dinners. Every free chance she gets, she retreats to our family camp up at the Charles Ranch property with a good book and great wine.

Lee Martinelli Jr., a fourth generation farmer, was born in Sonoma County in 1964. At the age of eleven Lee was driving a tractor and running an apple crew in the family orchards. Throughout the years he worked with his father learning the art of viticulture. In 1989 he ventured out on his own and leased 17 acres of chardonnay vineyards on the Sonoma Coast (prime wild pig hunting ground) from his maternal grandfather, George Charles. In the years following Lee acquired and developed two vineyards of his own in the Russian River Valley. In 2004 Lee received the Outstanding Young Farmer of the Year Award from the Sonoma County Harvest Fair.
These days Lee works closely with his father and his brother in the vineyards as well as being active in the family winery with his sisters and mother. He currently farms his own vineyards and leases and manages others with the help of his wife Pamela. He has been a board member of the Russian River Valley Winegrowers Association from 2005 to 2014, served as president in 2008-2009, and is a member of the Russian River Valley Winegrowers Foundation. When he is not working Lee enjoys mountain biking, jeepin’, snow skiing, hunting, camping, and water sports at Lake Pillsbury with his family and friends, especially his daughter Maddy-Lu.

George Martinelli, a fourth generation farmer, was born in Sonoma County in 1969. At the age of 10, George was driving a tractor and running an apple crew in the family orchards, which he still manages. Throughout the years he worked with his father learning the art of viticulture. In 2008 George received the Outstanding Young Farmer of the Year Award from the Sonoma County Harvest Fair. These days George works closely with his father and brother in the vineyards as well as being active in the family winery with his sisters and mother. He currently farms his own vineyards & manages others. George is one of the founders of the El Molino High School Foundation that raises money for his alma mater. When he is not working, George enjoys fishing, hunting & camping on our family’s Sonoma Coast Ranch with his family & friends, especially his wife & two daughters.