Jackass Hill Zinfandel
⏳ Drinking Window
2023 - 2030
🍽️ Food & Wine Pairings
Slow-smoked barbecue beef ribs, roasted venison, strong blue cheese
✨ Technical Specifications
Perched on a dizzying 60-degree slope in the Russian River Valley, Jackass Hill is legendary as the steepest non-terraced vineyard in Sonoma County. Planted in the late 19th century by Giuseppe Martinelli, the vineyard earned its colorful name from local farmers who declared that only a jackass would attempt to cultivate vines on such a treacherous incline. These ancient, head-trained, dry-farmed Zinfandel vines struggle through Franciscan clay loam soils, yielding minuscule quantities of intensely concentrated fruit. The winemaking process respects this heritage, utilizing native yeast fermentation and bottling the wine unfined and unfiltered. The resulting Zinfandel is famously powerful, opulent, and deeply complex, boasting a rich tapestry of dark bramble fruit, warm baking spices, and a signature voluptuous texture that defines classic, old-vine California Zinfandel.
🍾 About the Producer
Founded in the late 1880s by Italian immigrants Giuseppe Martinelli and Luisa Vellutini, Martinelli Winery is a celebrated multi-generational estate nestled in California's Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast. For over a century, the family has farmed historically significant, steep hillside sites, most famously the iconic Jackass Hill and Jackass Vineyard planted in 1887. Guided by an uncompromising dedication to estate viticulture and low-intervention winemaking, the winery captures the distinct microclimates and soils of Sonoma County. Martinelli is globally acclaimed for its powerful, old-vine Zinfandels, expressive single-vineyard Pinot Noirs, structured Syrahs, and richly textured Chardonnays.
🍇 Grape Varieties
Zinfandel
🍷 Alcohol By Volume (ABV)
15.5-17.5%