Wine of the Month

Courtney Benham

2003 Sauvignon Blanc

Martin Ray Winery

2191 Laguna Road

Santa Rosa, CA 95401

707-823-2404
 

www.martinraywinery.com

Comment:

Courtney Benham is both a man and a label.

The man is the driving force behind the revitalization of Martin Ray Winery. Martin Ray was one of the pioneers of California winemaking, learning from Paul Masson and buying his original Mountain Winery to start his own.  After his passing in 1976, the Martin Winery brand vanished from the market.  Stumbling across 1500 cases of library wines spanning almost 40 years from the winery in 1990, Benham was entranced.  He bought the wine and the trademark from the family, opening his own Martin Ray Winery to continue the tradition of combining high quality and value.

The label is a special project  of the Martin Ray Winery.  They buy excess inventory of wine from prestigious wineries in barrel, blend and bottle them before marketing them under the Courtney Benham label at attractive prices.  Unfortunately, that will usually mean they are produced in lots of only 1000 to 3000 cases.

This would be a wonderful summer wine, with citrus and pineapple flavors, but we had it in the Christmas season with our hostess's garlic shrimp.  It was just right, cutting through to the palate to set your mouth up for the next bite.