Petroni Vineyards

MyWineDeal is offering you two wonderful wines from Petroni Vineyards this week! The Brunello di Sonoma and Rosso di Sonoma are two spectacular red wines that you must try.  Below winemaker, Martin Mackenzie, answers a few questions about Petroni Vineyards and wines.

Where are you located? Do you have a tasting room?
Petroni Vineyards is located in Sonoma Valley, 1000 ft elevation off the valley floor at 990 Cavedale Rd. We have a Tasting Room that is open by appointment only. It is well worth the trip as the views are impressive, the wines fantastic and the ambience relaxed, intimate and in a beautiful setting.

There is always something going on at the winery here no matter what time of year. We currently have a huge cave complex being constructed. Built into this project will be a facility to distill our award winning Sangiovese Grappa on the Estate. We also recently purchased a state of the art Olive mill and Oil press for our Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil.

Do you come from a winemaking family? If not, what drew you to winemaking?
I do not come from a Winemaking family. Initially I was a carpenter but soon decided to pursue winemaking in order to keep my alcohol budget down while working in a career that I love being involved with.

How long have you been making wine?
This harvest will be my 16th. I spent ten years in New Zealand at a very well known world class Cabernet producer called Stonyridge Vineyard. This will be my fourth vintage here in California for Petroni Vineyards. I have done a couple double vintages, that is to say a Northern and Southern hemisphere vintage in one year.

How would describe your winemaking style?
My winemaking style is fairly traditional but with a huge focus on attention to detail in the winemaking process. I am very hands on and alter the exact techniques used according to what I see I front of me. No formula winemaking here!

Where do you source your grapes?
All our wines, with the exception of a Sonoma Coast Pinot Noir, are made from estate owned and managed vineyards, one at the winery site and the other on the Napa/Sonoma county line on Trinity Rd. Both are about 15 acres in vines, are located on the Sonoma side of the Mayacamas ranges and both are also certified organic.

We have a very special Sangiovese that is a focus of our production. The owner here, Lorenzo Petroni, was born in Lucca, Italy and has dedicated some of the best parcels of his property to producing a world class Sangiovese in the style of Brunello di Montelcino. The 2005 that we are currently offering is from a great vintage for that variety and perfectly represents what we hope to achieve with this wine.

What varietals are you currently growing and making?
We also produce Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, a house Red Blend called Rosso di Sonoma that is based around Sangiovese, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc and the Pinot.

Has your wine won any awards ?
Our Chardonnay is our most prolific award winner, Double Gold in the SF Chronicle Tasting, Gold in several other shows along with a number of 90+ points from various publications. It a real crowd pleaser, bright and focused ripe fruit, integrated and complimentary oak but also minerality and focus. No ML in this Chardonnay.

What has inspired you most?
I am always inspired by the properties I have had the privilege of making wines from. Also from the people I work with, particularly in the vineyard where we work hard to tweak our viticultural programs to optimize each different variety in each different location. It is fascinating seeing how to improve wines over a series of years as the style and techniques evolve. That is something you can’t be taught, it is an affinity for your trade you must have inside you.

Petroni Tasting Room

What is one thing about this wine you want to share with MWD customers?
The 2005 Sangiovese has power and intensity, the fruit is focused and a very direct representation of the unique and incredible property we have here. There are some lovely complexities that keep you interested and posses the hallmark of truly great wines, a very long, lingering and intense finish. I love it with Osso Bucco, or any Pasta, Pizza and meat dishes that include Tomato based sauces.

The Rosso is one of the best value wines on the market from either Napa or Sonoma. It is based around the Sangiovese and the 2007 vintage we currently offer is also packed with dark cherry and berry characters from our Syrah. It is the quintessential grilling wine, it goes well with red meat and while affordable enough to share around it still expresses very accurately the vineyard and fruit. It is made with all the care and attention of our top wines and is all estate grown and bottled.