2004 Martinelli Chardonnay Three Sisters Vineyard Sea Ridge Meadow
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Tasting notes
Green-gold. Intensely spicy nose features powerful orange, melon and lees notes, accompanied by an intriguing iodine quality. Dense and chewy, with impressive extract and concentrated citrus, pear and quince flavors. This has excellent balance for such intensity, finishing with admirable energy and persistence. Winemaker Helen Turley says that the fruit here is so strong that "it eats the oak." Those who can't find Marcassin's chardonnays (which means about 99.99% of those who'd like to) should try to get their hands on a bottle of this.
Critic scores
Average Score
Robert Parker
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
More reviews and scores
The other Chardonnay I tasted here was the late-released 2004 Chardonnay Three Sisters Vineyard Sea Meadow Ranch. A very small cuvee of only 290 cases from the Martinelli vineyard out on the Sonoma Coast, this full-bodied wine shows plenty of honeysuckle and notes of wet stones and quince along with a hint of tropical fruit, making for a compelling Chardonnay that will probably get better, as it is one of the tightest of these wines despite the fact that it is a year older. Drink it over the next 4-8 years. Kudos to the Martinelli family, one of the great old winemaking families of Northern California. (They also produce exquisite apples as well.) Not yet released. Previously recommended: 2004 Chardonnay Charles Ranch (91); 2004 Chardonnay Martinelli Road (94); 2004 Chardonnay Woolsey Road (92); 2004 Chardonnay Zio Tony Ranch (89?); 2004 Pinot Noir Blue Slide Ridge (92); 2004 Pinot Noir Bondi Home Ranch Water Trough Vineyard (89); 2004 Pinot Noir Moonshine Ranch (92); 2004 Pinot Noir Zio Tony Ranch (90); 2004 Zinfandel Giuseppe & Luisa (93); 2004 Jackass Vineyard (93); 2004 Jackass Hill Vineyard (95) Tel. (707) 525-0570; Fax (707) 525-9463
About the producer
Martinelli is a Sonoma benchmark for vineyard-designate bottlings—wines built to highlight how strongly a single site can shape Pinot Noir, Chardonnay, Syrah, and Zinfandel. Across the range, the focus stays consistent: small-production bottlings that feel distinctly tied to where they’re grown.