Bev Stenehjem
the Vine
Bev Stenehjem is a local wine enthusiast, author and free-
lance writer focused on the wineries of Santa Clara Valley.
Bev wrote “The Wineries of Santa Clara Valley,” a historical
photo book published by Arcadia Publishing in 2015.
Martin Ranch
M
artin Ranch Winery, owned by Dan and Thérèse
Martin, is located at the Southeastern tip of the Santa
Cruz Mountains Appellation.
The lushest and most scenic of our region, Martin Ranch
Winery is a South Bay paradise in our own back yard. Complete
with its own lake, vegetable garden and acres of vineyards, the
winery is tucked among the rolling green hills which surround them.
Like their award-winning wines, winemakers Thérèse and Dan
Martin have a well-balanced partnership of working together. They
each produce wine under their own unique label: Therese’s label is
Thérèse Vineyards and Dan’s wine is under the J.D. Hurley label.
With their intoxicating bouquets, Therese’s wines have a refined
elegance; fruit forward and dry. In contrast, Dan’s wines are easy-
drinking, rich and bold. Recently, they created a third label called
Soulmate; a joint effort that celebrates their devotion to each other.
Martin Ranch Winery is open for wine tasting every first and
third weekend (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) of the month.
The two of you are the sweethearts of our wine region.
How did you meet?
Dan: Back in 1983, I owned a couple of grocery stores, “Harvest Moon
Markets” (one in Watsonville and one in Corralitos). Thérèse was hired while
I was away.
Thérèse: I was going to Cabrillo College, living with my parents nearby
and wanted a part-time job. I started out as a checker and very quickly was
promoted to a manager. Dan mentored me in business management and
the wine and flower business. We moved from selling jug wine to specific
varietals and invested heavily in a flower department. Dan was a confirmed
bachelor who didn’t believe in dating the hired help. One day, after eight
years of working side-by-side, it just hit me – I realized I had deep feelings
for Dan. So I asked him, ‘Have you ever had feelings for someone but
didn’t know how to express it to them?’ Dan replied, ‘yes.’ So I asked him
who it was that he had these feelings for. I was shocked when he replied,
‘you!’ Our courtship began and one year later we were married. Although
our families and friends thought it would never work, we’ve been happily
married for 26 years.
How did you get started in a winery?
Dan: I saw the need to diversify after the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake
caused major damage to my grocery stores. So in 1992, I decided to
plant grapes on my property and sell them to other Santa Cruz Mountains
wineries. While I managed the vineyard, Thérèse continued to manage the
markets. And for the next ten years, we did very well with the Santa Cruz
Mountains ‘sweetheart’ contracts that were in place which not only required
a three-year notice of cancellation and automatically renewed – but which
also paid a premium for our region’s grapes. But one year, when one of our
major customers backed out of their agreement to purchase a large order of
our grapes – the same year there was an overabundance of grapes— we
panicked, thinking, what are we going to do with all these grapes? It was
our “aha” moment. We didn’t like the feeling of losing control of our busi-
ness. So that’s when we decided to open our own winery.
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GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
You have one of the most beckoning wineries in the business.
With lush views of the vineyards and surrounding hills, a
vegetable garden and a picturesque lake.
Was this planned from the beginning?
Thérèse: No, it just sort of happened! We figured it out along the way. We
were totally broke for years. Had we been more structured with a master
plan, we would have had a lot less stress.
Dan: In 2002, we got bonded and started making our wine in a rented
space at Matt’s (Fernwood Cellars, the winery next door). In 2004 we
met Pasquale Benedetto who built our winery. At first we only produced
Cabernet. But soon, we realized that we needed a white wine. We went
from harvesting five tons to fifty tons of grapes in the span of three years.
Martin Ranch is located on the border of Santa Clara and Santa
Cruz – which appellation do you identify with?
What are the benefits of your location?
Dan: We are a solid Santa Cruz Mountains winery and also belong to the
Wineries of Santa Clara Valley. Being on the east side of the mountains
allows our Cabernet to do very well.
Thérèse is a super smeller and Dan; a super taster. Give us an example
of what this means and how important these skills are in wine making.
Therese’s ability as a super-smeller is invaluable when we do wine
barrel work at the beginning of the winemaking process. At 58-62 degrees
Fahrenheit, I can’t smell anything at that cold temperature. But, Thérèse can.
She can take a bung out of a barrel and immediately smell if there is any
issue or problem that needs to be addressed. The first thing you do when
you drink a glass of wine is smell it – so it is critical that the wine’s aromas
are pleasing.
Thérèse: Dan uses his super-tasting skills to accentuate the flavors in his
blended wines – he can taste the nuances between a ¼ and a ½ percent.
december 2018-january 2019
gmhtoday.com
WINERY
Dan and Thérése, Owners