Martinelli Zins blindtasted

Introductory comments from tasting organizer Ross Bott:
Giuseppe Martinelli and his Luisa Vellutini left Italy and eloped to California in 1895, settling in the Green Valley, south and towards the Pacific Coast from the Russian River Valley, where the cool misty climate and lush vegetation reminded them of their native Piedmont. Giuseppe almost immediately got a job grafting Zinfandel shoots onto vines for a local grower, but spent his time looking for perfect spots in the area for starting his own Zinfandel vineyard. By 1899, he'd found four vineyard locations and planted them all to Zinfandel: Jackass Hill, Jackass Vineyard and two vineyards named Giuseppe and Luisa, after himself and his wife.

Giuseppe died unexpectedly in the early 1900s, and the vineyard responsibilities fell to his 12-year old son, Leno. The job was made particularly difficult because of the steepness of Jackass Hill and Jackass Vineyard (the latter on the northern slopes of Jackass Hill). With a grade of 60 degrees, Jackass Hill is the steepest non-terraced vineyard in Sonoma, and rivals the steepness of the German vineyards along the Mosel and Rhine. In fact, the vineyard got its name because only a jackass would pull a plow to farm a hill that steep. Leno was solely responsible for farming the vineyards for the next 77 years, only relinquishing control of to his son, Lee, at the age of 89.

In 1995 Martinelli hired Helen Turley to be winemaker, and she continues in this role to this day. She is actually the winemaker for three wineries in California simultaneously: Martinelli, Marcassin, and Blankiet, all of which have super-cult status.

Martinelli's Zinfandel style is somewhat in the same philosophy as Turley's (founded by Helen's former husband Larry Turley) -- find very old Zinfandel vineyards, keep the yields very low, harvest very late to achieve optimal ripeness, and intervene as little as possible in the winemaking process. Since the early 1990s, the results have been some of the most spectular Zinfandels that California has produced.

Tonight we'll try six Martinelli Zinfandels from 1999 through 2002, including two Zins from Jackass Vineyard and four Zins from the Giuseppe and Luisa vineyards.

• 2000 Martinelli Zinfandel Giuseppe & Luisa 92 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Group's #1 (my #2) – 26 pts; 3 firsts, 4 seconds, 0 thirds, 0 last places – medium red color with pale meniscus; rich berry and juicy boysenberry nose; big, port-like, ripe berry, hot palate with raisin note; medium-plus finish 92+ pts. (10 mos. in new French oak)

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• 2002 Martinelli Zinfandel Giuseppe & Luisa 82 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Group's #2 (my #6) – 30 pts.; 2, 2, 2, 1 - darkest, medium red color; slightly funky, dried plum and VA nose; TCA on palate, no fruit, molasses and milk chocolate; medium finish (Ross: "like shoe fly pie")

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• 1999 Martinelli Zinfandel Vigna di Luisa 91 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Group's #3 (my #3) – 32 pts.; 1, 2, 4, 0 – medium cherry red color with pale meniscus; focused dried cherry and VA nose; deep ripe plum, berry and milk chocolate palate with balance; medium finish 91+ pts.

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• 1999 Martinelli Zinfandel Giuseppe & Luisa 90 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Group's #4 (my #4) – 37 pts.; 0, 2, 2, 0 - medium red color with pale meniscus; oaky, milk chocolate and dried plum nose; mainly secondary and tertiary, hot, boysenberry, port-like, dried berry and rhubarb palate; medium finish (17% alcohol)

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• 2000 Martinelli Zinfandel Jackass Vineyard 93 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Group's #5 (my #1) – 37 pts.; 3, 0, 1, 3 – medium red color with pale meniscus; juicy, high pitched, lovely berry liqueur, raspberry and framboise nose; ripe cherry, cherry coke, chocolate and framboise palate; medium-plus finish (17.2 % alcohol)

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• 1999 Martinelli Zinfandel Jackass Vineyard 86 Points

  USA, California, Sonoma County, Russian River Valley

  Group's #6 (my #5) – 48 pts.; 1, 0, 0, 4 – medium slightly bricking red color with pale meniscus; ripe cherry, dried cherry nose with herbal and smoky note; tart, little fruit, high acidity, high alcohol, tart red fruit palate; medium finish (15.9% alcohol)

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