At the ages of 19 and 16, Giuseppe Martinelli and Luisa Vellutini eloped from their small village in Tuscany and made their way to California looking for land to farm and start a winery.

Giuseppe had been a winemaker in Italy. He was hired to plant a vineyard for a farmer in Forestville. Within two years, he had earned enough money to purchase land. Working side by side on a 60-degree slope, Giuseppe and Luisa planted a small area of Zinfandel and Muscat Alexandria vines, which later became known as the Jackass Hill vineyard. Over 135 years later, this south easterly exposure remains the steepest non-terraced vineyard in Sonoma County.

Source: Martinelli Winery website.