It took roughly a century for one of the oldest families in California wine, to actually begin making wine.

The Martinelli Family, famous throughout the country for their apple cider, have been grape growers in California for more than a century. Giuseppe Martinelli arrived in Sonoma's Russian River Valley in the 1880s, but it wasn't until the 1980s that the family produced its first wine. The long wait is especially surprising considering that the family owns some of California's best vineyards. 

Darek Trowbridge, the owner of Sonoma's Old World Winery, began studying wine at a young age with his grandfather. After receiving his Masters Degree in Enology from Fresno State he became deeply influenced by Biodynamic agricultural philosophy which he combines with a minimalist style of winemaking to create wines of great vibrancy and character.

For his intriguing Sauvignon Blanc "Bon Temps le Blanc" (2008), Darek sources fruit from the Cararo Vineyard in the Dry Creek Valley, where rocky river bank soils provide the fruit minerality, and Mendocino County's Redwood Valley where red hillside soils restrict yields and concentrate flavors. The result is a robust, earthy style of Sauvignon Blanc with notes of both apple and nutmeg. Like all Darek's wines ithe Sauvignon Blanc has been fermented only with native yeasts and preserved with as little sulphur as possible.

Darek's longstanding relationships with local growers, both in and out of his family, allows him to source exceptional fruit at a price that keeps his wines very affordable. Old World Winery's tiny tasting room, situated on the site where the William-Selyem winery was founded, just off of Highway 101 in Sonoma County, makes it a convenient spot for his easygoing winemaker dinners and wine club events featuring local musical artists.