2008 Syrah Vellutini Ranch

Martinelli is one of the original pioneering families in Sonoma. I tasted a wide range of wines during a recent visit. The 2008 Syrahs, from a challenging vintage, are a bit up and down, but the rest of the wines are all outstanding. As always, these are fairly bold, extroverted wines, but their overall balance is typically superb.

Lee Martinelli, Jr. told me that the frost control machines (essentially big turbines on towers that are powered by automobile engines) worked overtime in 2008, and that '08 proved that "an investment in those things is well worth it, especially in the vineyards that are cold to begin with, like pretty much everything out on the coast. Otherwise you could lose everything." Winemaker Bryan Kvamme reported that he's pleased with the depth and fruit expression of the 2008s and that they are less likely to shut down than the more structured 2007s, "which have started to go into a shell and can be tough to read right now. The '08s aren't drink-fast wines at all but the fruit is more expressive and their structure is less obvious." Kvamme reiterated that while he wants to make wines that are balanced, "they're also expressive of what we grow, and that's fully ripe, rich, powerful fruit. They're balanced but it's in their way, not in a shy way. It's a mistake to think that rich wines can't be balanced. They shouldn't be hot, though. If you sense heat then obviously we've blown it. The problem is when people read or hear the alcohol levels and then immediately start looking for it. It makes people paranoid but what can we do? We make opulent wines, simple as that."