Vellutini Ranch

Vellutini Ranch vineyard borders Jackass Vineyard and the backside of Jackass Hill. It is named after Luisa Martinelli’s family, the Vellutini’s who lived on this property. Albert Vellutini was Lee Sr.’s age and they used to fish in the streams and hide from the truant officer when they were kids on this property. They had more fun playing cat and mouse with the truant officer who did not know the creeks and valleys as well as they did.

The 2022 season started out with ideal conditions with early rains helping to push bud break into Spring. While we encountered instances of shatter (a grape berry fails to develop because of incomplete pollination) due to frost, this was limited to specific vineyards. Meticulous attention was given to addressing this issue, as we diligently assessed each block and thinned any clusters affected by shatter. Thankfully, the summer months offered the optimal combination of warm days and perfectly cool nights. However, Labor Day weekend launched what has been marked as one of the most heat-intensive 7-day periods on record for Sonoma County, resulting in a significant number of vineyards reaching their ripening stage simultaneously.

Rich aromas of black cherry, sweet leather, and boysenberry pie are present in the nose. A well-composed entry with flavors of raspberry compote and integrated baking spices are present throughout the palate. Dark flesh plum flavor enhances the graceful, long finish.

Chico's Hill

Chico’s Hill is a one acre vineyard on an easterly facing slope. It has a great soil profile which is predominantly fractured rock. Fractured rock makes for great growing conditions because the rock warms the earth by the early morning sun, stimulating vine growth, and in addition, rain water penetrates the soil depth easily and drains off. The landscape is long and narrow with a 45 degree slope, and was where Julianna Martinelli’s horse, Chico, was stabled when she was a child. The rows are oriented in a north-south direction to equalize sunlight exposure on both sides of the canopy morning and afternoon. For vine training we installed a vertical trellis system with fruit wire sitting 22 inches above ground level, encouraging consistent ripening of the grape clusters.  The vineyard consists solely of clone 877.

The 2022 season started out with ideal conditions with early rains helping to push bud break into Spring. While we encountered instances of shatter (a grape berry fails to develop because of incomplete pollination) due to frost, this was limited to specific vineyards. Meticulous attention was given to addressing this issue, as we diligently assessed each block and thinned any clusters affected by shatter. Thankfully, the summer months offered the optimal combination of warm days and perfectly cool nights. However, Labor Day weekend launched what has been marked as one of the most heat-intensive 7-day periods on record for Sonoma County, resulting in a significant number of vineyards reaching their ripening stage simultaneously.

The nose fills you with bursts of rhubarb, fresh ground coffee, and hints of sweet cream. Upon entry, the distinct palate has polished tannins with flavors of red plum and pomegranate, with black currants present in the impeccable finish.

Lolita Ranch

The Lolita Ranch is located on Martinelli Road in Forestville. The property was part of the original Martinelli Homestead Ranch, belonging to Giuseppe and Luisa Martinelli who purchased the steep, forested land in the late 1800’s.  Later, their eldest son Fred sold the parcel to his neighbor, Lolita Young’s mother. Eventually Bob and Lolita Young inherited it, and ran a herd of cattle on the land for many years. Lee Martinelli Jr. and his wife Pamela acquired the property in 1999 from Bob Young after Lolita’s passing, returning it back to the Martinelli estate and to the family’s continuing century-long legacy of viticulture. Lee Jr. decided to name the ranch after Lolita and planted the steep hillside in 2001 with four different grape varietals: Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Syrah and Zinfandel.

2021 was the driest year on record since they started keeping records 127 years ago. It was also the third year of drought conditions for Sonoma County. Contrary to these conditions, the summer was relatively cool and started two weeks later than the previous year. The drought conditions did bring ripeness to each of our varieties at just about the same time. By the end of the first week, we had 40% of the total tonnage in the winery. This included Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Zinfandel from both Fort Ross-Seaview and Russian River Valley. Despite being a very compact harvest, small clusters and berry size have yielded exceptional quality which makes 2021 a standout vintage.

Very fragrant nose with aromas of violets, milk chocolate, and blackberry compote.  Balanced tannins and enticing acid on the mouth with flavors of wild berries and coffee. Long structured finish ends with Montmorency cherry.

Hop Barn Hill

Hop Barn Hill was purchased by Uncle Tony Bondi in the late 1950s. It was one of the last remaining hop ranches. Uncle Tony purchased it with the intention of paving it over to put a trailer park on it. These were very fashionable and profitable ventures in the 1950s. He had the plans drawn, yet unfortunately he died in a freak tractor accident before he could implement his vision. Thankfully for us, Lee Sr. inherited the property and kept farming the apple orchards and vineyards currently on it. Later Lee Sr. created his own vision for the property and renovated the old Hop Kiln as our winery and the old Hop Barn as our tasting room in the 1980s, which we still use today.

2021 was the driest year on record since they started keeping records 127 years ago. It was also the third year of drought conditions for Sonoma County. Contrary to these conditions, the summer was relatively cool and started two weeks later than the previous year. The drought conditions did bring ripeness to each of our varieties at just about the same time. By the end of the first week, we had 40% of the total tonnage in the winery. This included Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, and Zinfandel from both Fort Ross-Seaview and Russian River Valley. Despite being a very compact harvest, small clusters and berry size have yielded exceptional quality which makes 2021 a standout vintage.

Complex aromas of blueberries, sweet tobacco, and Amarena cherries are found in the nose.

Layered tannins enhance the full palate with flavors of ripe cherry and barrel spice. A touch of fresh ground coffee is present in the lengthy finish.