(In the Dog) House Wine - Marietta OVR

When I got the call from my dog walker that Bob the Wonder Dog had done something un-wonderful on the living room carpet, I knew exactly what to do. Before I went home, I had to pick up a bottle of my go-to wine, my house wine  – Marietta Old Vine Red.  

“House wine” is the menu term used to describe mostly inexpensive wine served at restaurants, under enticing varietal names, such as “Chardonnay” or “Merlot.” I use it to describe what I keep in my house for the best, and worst, of occasions.  Like 90% of wine purchased, this bottle was consumed on the same day of purchase - as soon as I could remove the offending throw rugs and air out the house. I’m guessing that no one would want to drink a wine with a bouquet that could compete with dog poop.

Marietta Old Vine Red never disappoints. That is an elusive quality in a wine under $15. I bought it, #54, at Cap ‘n Cork for $14.99; $12.59 with a 6 bottle discount.  My opinion is echoed (well maybe he said it first) by Robert M. Parker, Jr. creator of the influential newsletter The Wine Advocate and its 100-point wine scoring system.  Parker’s quotes can be found on Marietta’s website www.mariettacellars.com including “If readers have not yet learned the formula here it is: Marietta Cellars = high quality, modest prices, and considerable pleasure!”

The website is as charmingly homegrown as the wine and tells the story of winemaker Chris Bilbro, striving for his American Dream and learning a way of life at the feet of his great aunt Marietta and learning winemaking from mentors Vic Berrizzi and Frank Pastori. I found Frank Pastori at www.sonomauncorked.com whose webmaster described Pastori Winery as “old school Sonoma County at its best.”  Frank, now in his late 80s, still tends 85 acres of vines and produces about 5,000 cases per year under the label his father founded in 1914.

I met Chris when he visited my former hometown on a market trip through his network of distributors. My friend Tony’s firm supplies nationally-known John’s Grocery with wine including Marietta Cellars. Wally, wine guru at John’s Grocery, had invited a few loyal Marietta customers in to meet the winemaker and taste the newest release. I found people from all walks of life telling their personal tales of tasting OVR Lot numbers as if they were collecting baseball cards or visiting continents so they could mark them off a bucket list.

I purchased OVR Lot #54 and have been trying to locate the current release Lot #56. No luck so far as I am having trouble finding a sales rep who understands the difference between Lot #53, Lot #54, Lot #55, Lot #56, etc. Hopefully, my request for assistance to the distributor, Olinger/Glazer’s of Indiana, will meet with success as #56 is listed on their website. Admittedly, OVR  is a non-vintage Zinfandel blend that has been produced for over 30 years. So, you could say that there is little difference among the releases but if I believed that, I wouldn’t’ drink wine – I’d drink Miller Light.

In addition to OVR, Marietta Cellars makes a Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, Petite Sirah, Port, and a Zinfandel/Petite Sirah/Carignane blend named Angeli Cuvee after the previous owners of the ranch.  If you are building a wine cellar, consider the Angeli Cuvee, the Port, and the Petite Sirah as all have aging potential up to 15 years.  

And if you want to meet the winemaker, buy a case from your favorite local retailer.  A volume purchase will get you noticed and give you an opportunity to let the retailer know your preferences.

Meet the Winemaker: Chris Bilbro

Chris where he is most commonly found

Chris Bilbro puts his life into his wine. As a child, growing up in his great aunt Marietta’s kitchen and garden, Chris learned to make the most with very little. While the presentation was simple, the food was always hearty and handmade, the portions plentiful, and flavors exceptional. This standard still holds true today. Chris’s winery in many ways emulates the style of Marietta’s kitchen: just as Marietta wasn’t afraid of garlic and rosemary, Chris isn’t afraid of full and ripe flavors in his wines.
Any chance he gets, Chris is outside. Whether it is at his ranch in Yorkville hunting mushrooms and wild boar, abalone diving in the Pacific, salmon fishing in Alaska, or pheasant hunting in Montana, Chris is equally passionate about his outdoor activities as he is about his winemaking. Constantly restocking his freezers, Chris can provide a wild game cuisine to suit any of his wines, along with fresh vegetables from his garden, on a moment’s notice. With no formal training in winemaking, Chris found mentors in wine as well as in life through old Italians the likes of Vic Berrizzi and Frank Pastori. Chris developed his style and “cut his teeth” making sausage with Vic, picking olives with Frank, and gardening and cooking with Marietta.

Chris in his glory...wild mushrooms in hand and strings of homemade sausage hanging behind him.

For Chris, winemaking is by no means a job and far more than just a passion. It is his lifestyle, his tradition, and his love. With three grandkids and three of his four boys already working for him, don’t be surprised in a few years to hear that Chris has stepped back a bit from Marietta Cellars and is living on a remote ridge top in Mendocino County making homemade wine for his friends, tending his garden, cutting wood for his woodstove, and cooking the same meals for his grandkids as his great aunt did for him many years before.