Winemaker Notes
From the second-oldest Riesling block in California, planted in 1964, Nadi is a tribute to Scot Bilbro’s partner, Lisa. This special dry-farmed, head-pruned vineyard in the Cienega Valley produces a small, concentrated crop. The wine shows vibrant aromas of white peach, apricot, and oyster shell minerality, with a honeycomb richness that adds depth. Its mouth-coating texture gives way to a crisp, lemon tart finish, balancing bone-dry freshness with generous
complexity. A reflection of Lisa’s clarity and creativity, this Riesling is both elegant and vivacious.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
From a site with some of the oldest plantings of Riesling in California, the 2022 Dry Riesling Nadi Wirz Vineyard is grown in decomposed granite and limestone, the vines head-pruned and dry-farmed. Clean, clear, and evocative, it has a nutty imprint that’s met by petrol and pine, fermented in steel but aged a year more in neutral oak. It has layers of nuance and complexity that should continue to evolve over the next 5-7 years.
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Wine Enthusiast
This bottling hails from one of the more historic and reliable vineyards on the entire Central Coast. Aromas of honeydew granita, citrus peel and crushed stone show on the nose. The palate is tightly wound, offering grapefruit peel and apricot flesh flavors that blend tartness with warmth.
Starting with only a handful of purchased grapes in 1978, Marietta Cellars has been a standout winery in Sonoma and Mendocino since the very beginning. Founded by Chris Bilbro, a Sonoma County native with winemaking roots dating back three generations, Marietta rose to prominence with its revolutionary Old Vine Red, a California red blend that essentially created the category. The winery has slowly expanded its estate holdings over the past thirty years, evolving into a beacon for high quality, balanced Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, and Rhône variety blends. Now fully estate-based and organically farmed, Marietta has vineyards spanning 310 acres in the Alexander Valley, McDowell Valley, and Yorkville Highlands. Notable among their heritage plantings are California’s oldest Syrah blocks, planted in the late 1800s.
Scot Bilbro, Chris’s son, has brought Marietta into its next, incredibly exciting phase. After graduating from UC Davis with a degree in Viticulture and Enology in 2007, Scot joined the winery full-time, assuming the role of winemaker in 2012. Steeped in the history of the California wine country and the traditions established by his father, Scot combines his creativity and technical background in guiding the winery’s vision of viticulture and winemaking. Today, the fusion of traditional values and style with modern precision have culminated in the most highly regarded wines of Marietta’s four decade history.
Riesling possesses a remarkable ability to reflect the character of wherever it is grown while still maintaining its identity. A regal variety of incredible purity and precision, this versatile grape can be just as enjoyable dry or sweet, young or old, still or sparkling and can age longer than nearly any other white variety. Somm Secret—Given how difficult it is to discern the level of sweetness in a Riesling from the label, here are some clues to find the dry ones. First, look for the world “trocken.” (“Halbtrocken” or “feinherb” mean off-dry.) Also a higher abv usually indicates a drier Riesling.
Taking advantage of the cool Pacific breezes that arrive via gaps between the Gabilan Range and the Santa Lucia Mountains, San Benito AVA is a great Central coast source for cool climate whites and Pinot noir.