Martin Ray wines tell a story about a sense of place. That sense of place is well rooted in the history of the Martin Ray brand. A November dinner at Martin Ray in the heart of the Russian River Valley, near Santa Rosa, Sonoma County, was an opportunity for me to reflect on a significant part of California wine history. Martin Ray, a name of historical significance in California winemaking, had a winery in Saratoga in the Santa Cruz mountains 1943-1972. Mentored by Paul Masson, Martin Ray took a Burgundian approach to making single varietal wines at his Mount Eden property. Some 20 years later, when 1500 cases of Martin Ray wines were discovered by Courtney Benham, Courtney decided to buy the brand. By buying the brand in 1990 he committed to producing single varietal artisanal wines with a sense of place. This commitment to the brand led to the establishment of Martin Ray Vineyards and Winery in 2003.
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| Martin Ray © Spaswinefood |
Today Courtney Benham and his winemaking team are committed to making wines worthy of the Martin Ray name. They include in their wine portfolio wines from some of the most revered California appellations. Their grapes comes their estate vineyard in Green Valley, and vineyards in Russian River Valley, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma Coast, Napa Valley and Santa Cruz Mountains.
Early November when this
Spaswinefood enthusiast attended the Wine Bloggers Conference #WBC17 in Santa Rosa, Sonoma I signed up for an evening at Martin Ray Winery. This was my opportunity to learn about Martin Ray wines.
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Martin Ray Wines © Spaswinefood
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After arrival at the winery the evening began with a wine tasting. I have chosen to highlight a few of Martin Ray wines. Amongst my favorite wines were their Pinot Noir wines.
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| Martin Ray Vineyards & Winery Pinot Noir Wines © Spaswinefood |
Zeroing in on the Pinot Noir wines I particularly liked their Martin Ray Pinot Noir 2015 and 2016 vintages.
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| Martin Ray, Pinot Noir, Sonoma County 2015 & 2016 © Spaswinefood |
My overall favorite was the 2015. I connected with its sense of place.
Yes, I did also enjoy their Chardonnay.
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| Martin Ray, Laguna Nueva Chardonnay, Russian River Valley 2016 © Spaswinefood |
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Martin Ray, Chardonnay Luguna Neuva 2016 © Spaswinefood
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I would suggest that visitors to the winery checkout the number of wine tasting options available. Amongst those tasting options includes a picnic lunch.
During our wine tasting there were tempting hors d'oeuvres available.
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| Hors D'oeuvres, Martin Ray Winery © Spaswinefood |
Our wine tasting was followed by dinner. Dinner was catered by Franchettis, Santa Rosa. It was buffet style dinner, which included tasty options, such as pizza, roasted chicken, Mac N'Cheese, Cauliflower steaks, butternut squash, green beans, and kale.
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| Buffet Dinner, Martin Ray Winery © Spaswinefood |
Dinner was fantastic. I am sure the caterer must be quite popular.
That evening was the perfect time for me to get caught up with wine blogger friends.
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| Wine Tasting, Martin Ray Winery © Spaswinefood |
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| #Winelovers, Martin Ray Winery © Spaswinefood |
Besides discovering the wines, and having great conversations, given that the dining area was near the barrel room, I just had to take a peek into the barrel room.
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| Martin Ray Wines Waiting, Near the Barrel Room © Spaswinefood |
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| Martin Ray Winery Barrel Room © Spaswinefood |
Because our visit was at night I did not get to view their estate vineyard. Although Martin Winery founded in 2003, is still a young winery it is well on its way to making wines, which share a delightful story about a sense of place. Martin Ray is brand not only well rooted in California wine making history, but also focused on producing wines, which have a sense of place.
I was delighted to attend this wine bloggers #WBC17 dinner excursion to Martin Ray. It is hard to beat casual dining, with tasty food and wine at
Martin Ray Vineyards and Winery.
I invite you to join me in my California wine country explorations in search of the best in Spaswinefood.
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| Martin Ray Winery © Spaswinefood |
Note: I would like to note that part of the expenses for this #wbc17 dinner excursion was covered by our host.
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