Grape Pomace & Must

therese wineFall weather has been beautiful in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The harvesting of  grapes that were delayed due to mid-October’s rains are now steadily coming in.  The Martins are pressing out juice from Syrah grapes and making room for harvest of the Estate Cabernet grapes soon to be coming in.  Therese is seen here shoveling out the remainder of the must from the initial fermentation process. The must will go to press once again to retrieve the remaining juice to add to barrel for the final fermentation process.  The leftover must, called  pomace, is added to the compost pile and is later added back to the Martin Ranch Winery vineyards for soil nutrients.

A Short History of the Wine Press

treading-wine-pressPressing the grapes through a wine press creates the final “juice” that goes into the barrel. The Martins use a modern wine press that is run on electricity and efficiently presses the grapes dry without damage to the skins of the grapes. This process limits the excess tannin that could be released from breakage of the skins and seeds into the juice.  Since the wine making process has been around, various types of wine presses have been in existence. In ancient times, wine was pressed through a stomping process.  Yes, folks would use their feet and body weight to extract the juice! Later wine presses were wooden screw types, bladders and continuous screw variations. Fortunately, today’s wine presses are clean, efficient and less damaging to the overall quality of the juice that eventually becomes award winning wine.


The Pond is Full

jpgOctober has been an interesting month weather wise. The Santa Cruz Mountains Appellation experienced pleasant weather throughout the beginning part of the month. The grapes were ripening on time, the sun was shining and slight breezes were blowing. Then on October 13th, a huge storm hit the Santa Cruz Mountains! And it turns out, this storm was a “real” storm, some even call it a gullywasher. The Martin Ranch received 11 inches of rain in one day! Never, it’s being said, has California experienced a storm this big, this early in the rainy season, according to the T.V. weatherman. The pond filled rapidly, and Dan & Therese donned rain suits and rubber boots to brave the stormy conditions and monitor the road and vineyard soils. Fortunately, no damage was done, however, harvesting of the Estate grapes is on hold. The grapes have absorbed  quite a bit of water, and that has reduced the brix (sugar) count. Now, the team is waiting for the brix  count to climb back up to harvestable levels. It looks like harvest will continue well into November.

Pressing the Madeline Vineyards Zinfandel

IMG_2157Harvest continues even though the rain has set picking back a bit! Dan Martin and David, the Cellar Master, are finishing up pressing Zinfandel grapes from Madeline Vineyard. The grapes were picked on October 10th and October 23rd, the grapes were pressed after fermentation was complete. The pressed grapes then go to barrel. The 2007 Therese Vineyards Madeline Vineyard Zinfandel, from the Santa Clara Valley, was a delicious and zesty Zin, possessing layers of berry jam and hints of pepper, with a luscious finish of subtle oak tannin nuances. The Martin Ranch Winery is looking forward to sharing the  exciting 2009  Zinfandel.

Farm to Table Dinner Series at the Chaminade

2aa9e558-1The Martin Ranch Winery is proud to be the featured and participating winery at the “Farm to Table” Dinner Series hosted at the lovely Chaminade Resort & Spa in Santa Cruz. The Chaminade is a AAA Four-Diamond award winning resort & spa overlooking the Monterey Bay, and is the first hospitality business in Santa Cruz County to receive a “Green Business Certification” for its environmental efforts.

The “Farm to Table” dinner, held October 30th at 6:00 pm, will feature a special menu featuring contemporary cuisine that captures the flavors of the Central Coast of California. The chef partners with local farmers to feature locally sourced products based on what is fresh on the market. Take a look at the menu that Chef Beverlie Terra has created to pair with the award winning Martin Ranch wines.  Reservations are necessary, please call 1.800.283.6569. This will be a delicious and elegant evening of exquisite dining with superb wines overlooking the Monterey Bay.

Come on out to the Martin Ranch Winery on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the Winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!


Certified Wildlife Habitat

 2Recently, the Martin Ranch Winery became a Certified Wildlife Habitat with the National Wildlife Federation. For over 35 years, the NWF’s Certified Wildlife Habitat program has shown people the benefits of turning your garden and backyard into a wildlife friendly habitat, by preserving and creating habitat that attracts birds and wildlife. There are five main criteria for receiving the Certification from the National Wildlife Federation, and the Martin Ranch excels in all categories! Here are the requirements for creating a Certified Wildlife Habitat.

 1Our year round pond is host to many diverse aquatic, bird and wildlife visitors. Just the other day, Dan and David saw 2 Bald Eagles flying over the lower vineyard! That was very exciting, as Eagles are fish eating raptors, and the pond certainly supplies large fish for them to feed on. Blue Herons are also seen frequently hunting on the top feeding fish in the pond.

Next time that you come to visit the Ranch, look for the beautiful metal sign that declares the Martin Ranch a Certified Wildlife Habitat with the National Wildlife Federation

Cafe Cruz Serves Martin Ranch Wine

 4Dinner at Cafe Cruz in Santa Cruz is always an enjoyable and delicious dining experience. Cafe Cruz first opened in 1995, where the old Grapestake Restaurant used to be, on 41st Ave. Chef Steve Wilson has crafted a distinctive gourmet style that he refers to as “New American Cuisine.” Cafe Cruz uses the best of fresh organic produce, sustainable seafood, source verified meats, along with distinctive bakery items, cheeses and desserts.

The atmosphere ranges from white linen tablecloths around a cozy fire, to fun outdoor patio dining. This is a great establishment to share with friends, as a festive occasion, or just for a great night out for dinner. Yelp reviewers love this place! Make sure and enjoy a bottle of Martin Ranch Cabernet Sauvignon next time you vista Cafe Cruz for lunch or dinner.

Martin Ranch Wines in Wine Enthusiast Magazine

 3Martin Ranch Winery is proud to announce that Wine Enthusiast Magazine will be featuring the J.D. Hurley 2008 Sauvignon Blanc-Arroyo Seco, with a 90 point rating, in their November Value Issue.

JDH.08.Sav.BlancWine Enthusiast Magazine and Wine Enthusiast Online is conceived and executed by a team of experienced editors based in New York, California, Washington, France and Italy. Each offers a unique set of expertise, personality and perspective to Wine Enthusiast’s team, but everyone on our staff is united by one mission: to taste, enjoy, and communicate our love of the best wines, spirits and food in the world to readers in a fun, fresh and accessible way. Learn more about about us and check back soon for blogs and columns covering everything from the great screwcap debate to why you should drink Chardonnay for breakfast.

Martin Ranch Winery is always thrilled to have great reviews in world class magazines. Check back with the Wine Enthusiast in early November for the full review.

Come on out to the Martin Ranch Winery on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the Winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!


Harvest in the Santa Cruz Mountains

 2 (1)The Martin Ranch Winery is deep in the heart of harvest. Picking of the Estate Cabernet Sauvignon grapes has begun. The weather is turning cool and their is a threat of rain in the near future, so it is important to get the grapes picked and crushed as soon as possible. Therese is calculating the Brix count daily to determine which vineyard gets picked next.

 1Once the grapes have finished initial fermentation in the large stainless steel tank, the “free run” juice is then pumped over into the press to make a final pressing before the juice goes into the smaller tanks for malolactic fermentation. After all the juice has been pumped out, the remaining product left in the tank is called pumice. This is end result of the fermented grapes and skins. The pumice goes one more time through the press to release any remaining juice. The final dry pumice then goes into the compost pile which will get spread back into the vineyard in the early spring.

Brix and Hydrometers

 3Brix is a term that is well known in the wine growing world. Technically, Brix is a measurement of the dissolved sugar to water mass ratio of a liquid. In other words-the amount of sugar in a liquid. This sugar, which occurs naturally in ripened grapes, converts to alcohol during fermentation. It is crucial that the Brix number within the grapes, be at a high enough sugar count, approximately 25-27 brix, to ensure proper conversion of sugar to alcohol from the grapes during the initial fermentation period.

 4The tool that Therese uses to determine the Brix, is called a hydrometer. This is a simple instrument that measures the weight or gravity of a liquid in relation to water. The higher the hydrometer floats in the liquid, the higher the sugar, or Brix content is. Therese presses fresh juice from the harvested grapes, pours the juice into a lab beaker and then measures the Brix with her hydrometer. When the Brix number is correct, the grapes get picked!

Local Good Times Review

JDH.08.Sav.Blanc-1One of Santa Cruz County’s local papers, The Good Times, has featured the Martin Ranch Winery as the “..Homegrown Wine Pick of the Week,” in the October 8th edition. Josie Cowden, wine and food critic for the Good Times and the Santa Cruz Sentinel, attended the annual Martin Ranch Wine Club BBQ held in August, and wrote a nice review of the winery and how she enjoyed the J.D. Hurley 2008 Sauvignon Blanc. She mentioned most of the Martin Ranch wines that won in recent wine competitions and cited how popular the winery is. It is very exciting for the Martin Ranch wines to be recognized and enjoyed by local wine reviewers. Thank you Josie!

Come on out to the Martin Ranch Winery on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the Winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!

Santa Clara Valley Wineries Passport Weekend

Harvest 09The Martin Ranch Winery was open this past weekend for the Santa Clara Valley Wineries Passport weekend. The weather cooperated nicely and we had beautiful,  cool, fall temperatures and skies. Folks from the Santa Clara Valley were able to enjoy the Martin Ranch wines and to see the Winery during harvest. We had a nice turnout of friendly people and look forward to the next Santa Clara Valley Passport.

Harvest 09 (1)

Here is some fascinating information about the history of winemaking and viticulture in the Santa Clara Valley, which dates back to the 18th century. From the discovery of “Vitis Californica” grapes growing wild by the Missionaries, to the first plantings of Mission grapes at the Santa Clara Mission in 1798, the Santa Clara Valley has a rich tradition of agriculture, and the “planting” of new ideas. The Martin Ranch Winery is very proud to be part of this local history.

Harvesting Syrah Grapes

Harvest 09 4 - Version 2Harvest is in full swing at the Martin Ranch Winery! The crush continues with Syrah grapes grown by a local Santa Clara Valley vineyard called Dos Ninas Vineyards, which is a family owned and operated vineyard in the gilroy area.  Syrah grapes are a dark skinned varietal that produces a very intense red wine.  Syrah is one of the oldest established grape varietals in the Côtes du Rhône region of southern France and is considered the noble red grape of the northern Rhone Valley. Martin Ranch Winery’s Therese Vineyards Syrah continues to be an award winning wine, and is a wine that we are very proud of, continuing on with an established and cherished tradition.

Harvest 09 30 - Version 2Once the de-stemmed grapes go into the fermentation tanks, one of the daily tasks is to punch the grapes down. This is done several times per day in order to keep the grapes wet and to make sure all the color leaches from the skins to give the red wine it’s characteristic deep red color. After the grapes finish primary fermentation, they are then run through a press and into smaller stainless steel tanks to finish the malolactic fermentation process. In general, the grapes remain in the stainless steel tanks during this process for about 30 days and are then pumped into various oak barrels for the remaining time until bottling occurs. Careful monitoring of the stages of fermentation are vital and require daily diligence. As always, the Martin Ranch team keeps busy with the excitement of harvest and crush.

Come on out to the Martin Ranch Winery on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the Winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!


The Santa Cruz Mountain Appellation

 (1)Since the late 1800’s, the Santa Cruz Mountains have been recognized as a premium wine producing region. As you can see from this historical photo, local farmers have been enjoying the cool and sunny climate of the Santa Cruz Mountains to grow wine for over a hundred years. In 1981, the Santa Cruz Mountains Viticultural Appellation was federally recognized. This appellation is defined by the mountain topography, following the fog line along the coast, to the highest vineyards on the ridgetops, which rest at about 2600 ft. The Santa Cruz Mountains Appellation encompasses the Santa Cruz Mountain range from Half Moon Bay in the north to Mt. Madonna in the south, and is primarily defined by elevation.  The unique climate, topography, soil content and terrior reflect the complex characteristics of Santa Cruz Mountain wines. The Martin Ranch Estate wines truly reflect the Traditional heritage of the Santa Cruz Mountain Winegrowing Appellation.

(Photo courtesy of Late Harvest Project)

Taste of Morgan Hill

Taste.rev9(4-22-09).epsThe team at Martin Ranch Winery was on hand to pour several of their award winning wines at the local “Taste of Morgan Hill,” sponsored by the Morgan Hill Chamber of Commerce. This is a wonderful family event that has something for everyone. Classic cars, arts and crafts, local wineries and micro beers, excellent food, music, kidszone, and a beautiful indoor quilt show. The event was located in downtown Morgan Hill. The weather was a classic, beautiful Indian Summer day, friends and family enjoyed the outdoors and exciting venues and Martin Ranch Winery wines were a big hit!

Heirloom Tomatoes in the Garden

Harvest 09The unusually cool weather of spring and summer 2009 gave our garden a bit of a slow start this year, but the vegetables are starting to come in! The Heirloom tomatoes are doing wonderful now that the weather has turned warm. Tomatoes are eaten at every meal at the Martin Ranch, and everyone loves the full and deep flavor of homegrown, organic Heirloom tomatoes. Heirloom vegetables, which the tomatoes are part of, are known as a cultivar, and these vegetables were commonly grown during earlier eras of human agricultural history. The heirloom vegetables have kept many of their traits through open-pollination. As this kind of pollination can be tricky to control, most commercial growers opt for growing tomatoes that have been genetically bred for consistent size under all growing conditions- often sacrificing taste. The Martin Ranch organic garden is proud to be growing these beautiful, delicious and sustainable tomatoes for the farm table.

Come on out to the Martin Ranch Winery on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the Winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!


Dos Rios Cabernet Sauvignon

Harvest 09 7 - Version 2 (1)The Winery has begun harvest of local Santa Clara Valley Appellation Cabernet Sauvignon grapes from the Dos Rios Vineyard located at the end of Redwood Retreat Rd. The location of the vineyard has some very interesting history.

We started picking the 7-8 tons of grapes from Dos Rios Vineyard last week. We hand sort and visually inspect each  bunch of grapes, insuring that only quality clusters and berries go into the making of this fine wine. After the sorting process, the grapes go into the de-stemming machine so that only the whole berries get pumped into the stainless steel tank where the fermentation process begins. Careful monitoring of the fermentation is vital at this stage of wine making.  The grapes need to stay moist and oxygenated, and this requires “pumping over” the juice over the fermentation cap several times per day. We will talk more about the process as the busy harvest season continues.

Therese Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon- Dos Rios Vineyards

TV.05.Cab.DosRiosThe Martin Ranch Winery is excited to announce the release of Therese Vineyards 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon from the Dos Rios Vineyards. This is a fabulous and delicious wine and is a Double-Gold winner from the San Francisco International Wine Competition 2009. This wine showcases rich berries and cassis up-front, transcending into a full, round middle, moving into a long, supple, tannic finish. The Therese Vineyards 2005 Cabernet wine can be purchased from the Winery during Passport weekend or from the online store.


The Gilroy Foundation

Harvest 09 2 - Version 2The Martin Ranch Team was proud to pour their award winning wines Saturday at the Gilroy Foundation “20th Annual Day in the Country.”  The Gilroy Foundation “invests charitable gifts that serve the needs of the Gilroy Community.”

Bottle Your Own

IMG_4887The season’s final “Bottle Your Own” event is Sept 26th and 27th. Make sure and sign up now!


Check out the video to see how much fun everyone had at the last “Bottle Your Own” event. See you there.

Come on out to the Martin Ranch Winery on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the Winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!

Chardonnay Sailing-09 147On Friday night, the Martin Ranch team along with wine club members and several other folks, set sail aboard the Chardonnay II out of the Santa Cruz Harbor, for a Winemaker Sail.  What a beautiful evening we had for a sail! The sunset was glorious, the people were fun and the captain and crew of the Chardonnay II were a delight to be around.

Chardonnay Sailing-09 68Throughout the summer months, the Chardonnay II offers Winemaker Sails. This is a chance for people to enjoy sailing aboard a beautiful 70 ft luxury yacht, enjoy the coastline of the Monterey Bay, sample local wines and meet the Winemakers.

The Martin Ranch Winery was the featured winery for this sail, and everyone enjoyed drinking award winning wines, sailing and meeting the winemakers. Everyone had a great time.

Chardonnay Sailing-09 194

While sailing on the Chardonnay II, one of the picturesque scenes is the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk.  This historic park is the only major seaside amusement park on the entire West Coast and the oldest amusement park in California.

Sailing away from the Boardwalk brought us close into the Santa Cruz Wharf, where we were delighted by the antics and barking of the Stellar Sea Lions basking under the piers. The views of the historic Santa Cruz Lighthouse were superb at sunset.

Chardonnay Sailing-09 166

Come on out to the Martin Ranch Winery on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the Winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!

Chardonnay Sailing-09 239

Sauvignon Blanc Grapes

DSC_0021 1And so, harvest has begun! We are starting out the harvest season with 3 tons of Sauvignon Blanc grapes grown locally here, right down Redwood Retreat Rd. Two tons are coming from Denise Vineyards and one ton is coming from Madrone Vineyards. We pressed the grapes on Thursday, and they are now in a large stainless steel tank going through a slow cold fermentation process. The temperatures in the tank are between 55º and 60º and the juiced Sauvignon Blanc grapes will go through the cold fermentation process for about 3 weeks and then will remain in the stainless steel tanks for a few months. Then we will transfer the wine into neutral barrels for several months to give the wine a hint of oak. We love the Sauvignon Blanc wine chilled in the summer months and look forward to a great 2009 wine!

Martin Ranch Wine at Whole Foods Markets

whole foodsWe are excited to be selling our wine at several Whole Foods Markets. The Whole Foods in Santa Cruz ,Los Gato, Cupertino, Campbell and Redwood City are currently carrying a couple of varieties. The wine display that is set up in Los Gatos is very nicely done and showcases our wine beautifully. If you are in Los Gatos or Santa Cruz and you need to pick up a bottle of Martin Ranch Wine for dinner, please stop by Whole Foods Market.

Bottle Your Own

IMG_4838 - Version 2The fabulous and fun “Bottle Your Own” event is back! We filled up fast when we offered the Bottle Your Own last May, and we are now filling up fast for the event to be held September 26th & 27th. This is a really fun way to experience the bottling and labeling process and to be able to bring home some delicious wines at great prices. Sign Up to reserve your time slot and how many cases you wish to bottle. You can also call us at 408.842.9197. Check out the video from the most recent “Bottle Your Own.”

Come on out to see us on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!

Ciao´   Therese & Dan

Deer in the Rose Garden

IMG_0785

We have noticed lately, that some of our beautiful rose bushes look like they have been eaten by an animal. Well, the other morning, I looked out the window of our office, and saw this cute little guy busy at work eating! Dan quickly grabbed his camera and caught this adorable photo of the baby deer. Of course now we have to check the fence lines and prevent any future deer from coming in the vineyard. Sure made us smile though.

Filtering the Wine

IMG_2953David, our Cellar Master and the Martin Ranch Winery team have been busy filtering and bottling wine. This last batch we filtered and bottled, is a J.D. Hurley 2007 Zinfandel. This Zinfandel is a blend from 4 vineyards. Filtering the wine is a process that takes time and thoroughness. The Zinfandel fermented in oak barrels for 21 months before the filtering process began. We then took the wine from the barrels and pushed it through coarse filters, into a stainless steel tank to create one blend of wine. Then from the stainless steel tank, we pushed the blended wine through a much finer filter back into another stainless steel tank and is ready to bottle. The wine will be bottled on Monday and stored until the release date. Looking forward to sharing this tasty Zinfandel with everyone in the future.

Biodegradable Picnic Items

MRW bbq 2009 4 - Version 2At the wine club BBQ last weekend, we had over 400 wine club members, guests and staff all eating delicious BBQ food. We were really excited to present the food on completely biodegradable picnic ware. The picnic ware was purchased through World Centric, which is a local non-profit organization, whose mission is to be a trusted source of environmentally sustainable and socially equitable produced products for the local community at reasonable prices. The plates and bowls that we used, are made from bagasse, residual sugarcane fiber, and the utensils are made from corn starch resin. All of these picnic items will compost in 180-360 days. Dan & I and the Martin Ranch Team,  are truly excited to be doing our part to help create a sustainable world.

Come on out to see us on the 3rd weekend of the Month, when the winery is open to the public and wine club members. We always look forward to seeing you!

Ciao´   Therese & Dan

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