Martin Ray befriended Paul Masson, a native Burgundian, originally in the 1900s. Paul became his mentor over time and they spent many vintages working together. ⁣⁣Martin Ray purchased Masson’s holdings in 1936. The industry was still hurting from prohibition and Masson warned Martin not to buy the business. Martin could not help himself and purchased the holding, then in 1943 sold to Seagrams. He took cuttings from Masson’s vineyards and decided to purchase his own land across the canyon.⁣⁣ ⁣⁣ The cuttings Mason brought back in 1896, as told by Martin Ray, came from Masson’s friend Louis Latour. The Masson-derived cuttings are what we today call Mt. Eden selection Chardonnay. ⁣⁣We are inspired by Martin Ray and Paul Masson for their visionary work in the California wine industry. To step foot on the soils that Martin Ray labored over is hard to articulate. We feel lucky and honored to be able to source fruit from this iconic site. Sitting 1,500 feet above the valley floor, the vines are 40+ years old and are dry farmed. From this, we achieve extremely concentrated flavors with a saline backbone.

Peter Martin Ray is part of California’s winemaking history dating back to Prohibition. These 40+-year-old Chardonnay vines are head-trained and dry-farmed creating a most concentrated wine. The expressive nose of this Chardonnay leads with elderflower and lemon verbena. Lemon oil, almond flour, white peach, and wet stone are framed by the signature brininess that Peter Martin Ray exudes. Aged in neutral oak for 12 months, then stirred and racked to stainless steel barrels for an additional 4 months.