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Wine Information
Cabernet Sauvignon Sonoma Valley Monte Rosso – Louis M. Martini Winery
"We believe that Cabernet Sauvignon is the most noble of grapes. We believe that great winemaking begins with great vineyards, and we want the land to speak through our wines. Our wines express the best characteristics of Cabernet, the personality of the special places where our grapes are grown, and the vision and skill of the winemaker in blending balanced, engaging, and memorable wines."
When he opened his Napa Valley winery in 1933, Louis M. Martini was a colorful, energetic young man who believed that the best wine could only be made from the best grapes. To grow those grapes, he needed the best vineyard land he could find. He found that land in Napa and Sonoma counties.He said “my heart is in Napa, but my soul is in Sonoma,” and he put both heart and soul into his wines.
Louis Michael Martini was born in 1887 near Genoa, Italy. At age 12 he traveled to San Francisco to help his father, who had a small business selling fresh seafood to local merchants.
Father and son first made wine in their backyard in 1906. From that moment Louis knew what he wanted to do with his life. At 19, he went back to Italy to study winemaking with the masters there, then returned to California to begin a lifetime with wine, vine, and land.
Louis made wine with his father, and when his parents returned to Italy in 1918, he worked as a consulting winemaker, taking a variety of jobs in and around the wine business. Throughout Prohibition he made wine to be used in religious services. He opened his first winery in 1922, during the depths of Prohibition, showing foresight and intuition that would serve him all his life.
At the end of Prohibition in 1933, Louis M. Martini began building a new winery in St. Helena, a few miles north of the town of Napa. It is here that the Martini family winemaking continues today.
In 1954 Louis M. Martini made his son, Louis P. Martini, the winemaker in the family winery. Highly educated, with expertise in many fields, Louis P. was a fearless experimenter. His own son, current winemaker Michael Martini, says, “Besides being innovative in the winery, my dad was innovative with vineyards. He could really size up good vineyard land. He was a pioneer in vineyard design. He really knew how to find good dirt.”
Michael Martini grew up in his father and grandfather’s vineyards, learning first-hand what it takes to make world-class wines. A graduate of the world-renowned winemaking program at U.C. Davis, Mike worked alongside his father before taking over the reins as winemaker in 1977. He continues to develop his own strong personal style, creating wines that are balanced, complex, and well-suited to accompany foods.
Michael's sister, Carolyn Martini, works as a director of the Louis M. Martini Winery. Carolyn is deeply involved with wine education, community affairs, and the role of the family business in Napa and Sonoma counties, as well as in the California wine industry overall.
Nestled in the majestic Mayacamas Mountain range nearly 1,000 feet above the Sonoma Valley is a vineyard that has produced award-winning Cabernet Sauvignon for three generations. Owned by the Louis M. Martini winery since 1938, the Monte Rosso vineyard (named “Monte Rosso” or “Red Mountain” for its rich, red volcanic soils) is a steep and rugged mountain vineyard with a desirable western exposure that produces wines with a unique sense of terroir.
