Jackass Hill Zinfandel
⏳ wine.drinking_window
Typically best enjoyed 5–15 years from vintage release.
🍽️ wine.food_pairings
Slow-smoked barbecue beef ribs, roasted venison, strong blue cheese
✨ wine.spec_sheet
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.
🍾 wine.about_producer
Established in 1887 by Tuscan immigrants Giuseppe Martinelli and Luisa Vellutini, Martinelli Winery is a historic, family-owned estate nestled in the Russian River Valley of Sonoma County, California. Renowned for its deep agricultural heritage spanning over six generations, the winery is celebrated for farming some of the region's most steep and challenging terroirs, most notably the iconic, near-vertical Jackass Hill vineyard. Under the stewardship of the Martinelli family, the estate employs meticulous hand-farming, dry-farming techniques, and minimalist winemaking practices—such as utilizing native yeasts and bottling unfined and unfiltered—to craft wines of extraordinary concentration and character. Their signature portfolio highlights powerful, old-vine Zinfandels, alongside elegant, single-vineyard Pinot Noirs, Chardonnays, and Syrahs that beautifully express the unique microclimates of Sonoma County.