Marketta Fourmeaux
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From the beginning, Marketta has been making all the wines, overseeing the vineyards and sharing the business management responsibilities. She has gained a considerable following through her contagious passion and joy in sharing her wines.
She has worked her way up with her commitment to “hands-on” winemaking to become one of the most respected female winemakers in America.
For 17 years, Marketta has been making wines that are a pure expression of Chateau Potelle’s Mount Veeder vineyards. Using natural yeast fermentation, gravity racking and minimal reliance on machines, her gentle European-style of winemaking allows the grapes to express their natural personality and character.
She is known for the balance, quality and elegance of her wines, earning Chateau Potelle the recognition of a top-ranking producer of Cabernet Sauvignon, Zinfandel, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc.
In addition to making the wine and co-managing the business, she has directed the planting of new vineyards and the strategic replanting of older vines. Each planting was preceded by at least one year of her research into the soils, and the best rootstock and vine clones to be matched to each site.
An artisan winemaker, Marketta crafts each wine from vine to bottling. Grapes are harvested, fermented and aged separately by block. Picking is done by hand, and only when the grapes are at perfect maturity. Often, one block will be harvested several times. Marketta has respect for the individuality of each vine in terms of sun exposure, soil, elevation and other influences on each of Chateau Potelle’s numerous small hillside plots.
