Courtney Benham bought 1,500 cases of orphaned Martin Ray wine from a San Jose warehouse in 1990 and has carried the legendary winemaker's name forward ever since. The Russian River estate occupies the historic 1881 Martini & Prati site — the oldest continually operating winery in Sonoma County.
Martin Ray was a California winemaking pioneer, mentored by Paul Masson and dedicated to single-varietal, region-specific wines from 1943 to 1972 in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The label fell dormant after Ray's death, and in 1990 Courtney Benham — cofounder of Blackstone Winery — stumbled on 1,500 cases of Martin Ray wine in a San Jose warehouse. He bought the brand, recommitted to Ray's terroir-focused philosophy, and in 2003 moved production to the historic Martini & Prati winery (established 1881) in the Russian River Valley — the oldest continually operating winery in Sonoma County, having survived Prohibition by producing sacramental wine.
Founder's Ridge Chardonnay, Russian River Valley — A flagship estate Chardonnay from the Laguna Ridge property.
Concrete Chardonnay, Russian River Valley — Fermented in concrete for a leaner, mineral-driven profile.
Estate Grown Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley — Elegant and complex with cherry, raspberry, and spice.
Mardikian Vineyard Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley — A single-vineyard expression from the estate program.
Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley — The Napa exception; rich, full-bodied, and firmly structured.
The 12-acre estate sits on the Laguna Ridge at the edge of Green Valley, planted to Pinot Noir clones including Clone 37 (Martin Ray's original Santa Cruz Mountains selection). Principal winemaker Leslie Renaud leads the team alongside Raemy Paterson, sourcing fruit from Russian River, Santa Cruz Mountains, Napa, Sonoma Coast, and beyond. The grounds include classic English gardens, a fountain courtyard, bocce, and the original 1881 redwood fermentation tanks and concrete vats, now part of the visitor experience. Tasting flights range from the Tower Flight to library tastings of aged Cabernet Sauvignons in the Twin Fir Room.
Few winemakers travel a less linear path than Leslie Mead Renaud. Born in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1965 and raised partly in Honolulu by a Navy father, she worked as a scuba instructor, earned a degree in natural resources from the University of Michigan, and spent years with the Forest Service in Oregon and as an urban forester in California before a lab-technician job at Ironstone revealed winemaking as the blend of science and art she'd been looking for. She built her craft at Clos du Bois, Sonoma Creek, and Hans Fahden, managed production at Bonny Doon, and rose from enologist to winemaker at Talley before leading wines for Foley's Lincourt and Foley Estate and serving as director of winemaking at Roth Estate. She joined Martin Ray in 2019, where she makes terroir-driven, balanced cool-climate wines with native fermentation and a deliberately light hand.
Courtney Benham’s path to wine began on a Bakersfield farm and a short-lived run at professional tennis before his family’s Lost Hills Winery drew him into the business. After building Blackstone into a powerhouse, he stumbled in 1990 onto 1,500 cases of library wine from California pioneer Martin Ray in a San Jose warehouse — and bought the wine, the name, and eventually the historic Martini & Prati winery that became Martin Ray’s Russian River Valley home in 2003. As founder and proprietor, Benham channels Ray’s “wines of place” ideology across his CMB family of labels, thinking less in vintages than in legacy.
Update your editorial to go live.
UpdateReview your current editorial on the left. Submit changes in the matching fields on the right — leave any field blank if no change is needed.
1. Update one section at a time using its SEND button.
2. Each SEND creates a provisional draft — your live page is not updated yet.
3. Complete the final submission at the bottom to approve and publish.
Your editorial page and submission form are always accessible through this page — and only to you. Update anytime.
Founder's Ridge Chardonnay, Russian River Valley — A flagship estate Chardonnay from the Laguna Ridge property.
Concrete Chardonnay, Russian River Valley — Fermented in concrete for a leaner, mineral-driven profile.
Estate Grown Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley — Elegant and complex with cherry, raspberry, and spice.
Mardikian Vineyard Pinot Noir, Russian River Valley — A single-vineyard expression from the estate program.
Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley — The Napa exception; rich, full-bodied, and firmly structured.
Martin Ray was a California winemaking pioneer, mentored by Paul Masson and dedicated to single-varietal, region-specific wines from 1943 to 1972 in the Santa Cruz Mountains. The label fell dormant after Ray's death, and in 1990 Courtney Benham — cofounder of Blackstone Winery — stumbled on 1,500 cases of Martin Ray wine in a San Jose warehouse. He bought the brand, recommitted to Ray's terroir-focused philosophy, and in 2003 moved production to the historic Martini & Prati winery (established 1881) in the Russian River Valley — the oldest continually operating winery in Sonoma County, having survived Prohibition by producing sacramental wine.
The 12-acre estate sits on the Laguna Ridge at the edge of Green Valley, planted to Pinot Noir clones including Clone 37 (Martin Ray's original Santa Cruz Mountains selection). Principal winemaker Leslie Renaud leads the team alongside Raemy Paterson, sourcing fruit from Russian River, Santa Cruz Mountains, Napa, Sonoma Coast, and beyond. The grounds include classic English gardens, a fountain courtyard, bocce, and the original 1881 redwood fermentation tanks and concrete vats, now part of the visitor experience. Tasting flights range from the Tower Flight to library tastings of aged Cabernet Sauvignons in the Twin Fir Room.
Few winemakers travel a less linear path than Leslie Mead Renaud. Born in Portsmouth, Virginia, in 1965 and raised partly in Honolulu by a Navy father, she worked as a scuba instructor, earned a degree in natural resources from the University of Michigan, and spent years with the Forest Service in Oregon and as an urban forester in California before a lab-technician job at Ironstone revealed winemaking as the blend of science and art she'd been looking for. She built her craft at Clos du Bois, Sonoma Creek, and Hans Fahden, managed production at Bonny Doon, and rose from enologist to winemaker at Talley before leading wines for Foley's Lincourt and Foley Estate and serving as director of winemaking at Roth Estate. She joined Martin Ray in 2019, where she makes terroir-driven, balanced cool-climate wines with native fermentation and a deliberately light hand.
Courtney Benham’s path to wine began on a Bakersfield farm and a short-lived run at professional tennis before his family’s Lost Hills Winery drew him into the business. After building Blackstone into a powerhouse, he stumbled in 1990 onto 1,500 cases of library wine from California pioneer Martin Ray in a San Jose warehouse — and bought the wine, the name, and eventually the historic Martini & Prati winery that became Martin Ray’s Russian River Valley home in 2003. As founder and proprietor, Benham channels Ray’s “wines of place” ideology across his CMB family of labels, thinking less in vintages than in legacy.
Please submit your images separately — they're handled by a different department and will be processed alongside your editorial update.
Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form
