2015 J. Lohr Estates Seven Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon
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Michelle Ball, The Tasting Panel
- “‘There are four words I use to describe Seven Oaks: dense, soft and never green,’ says Steve Peck, J. Lohr’s winemaker for red wines. Though Seven Oaks Estates is J. Lohr’s entry-level Cabernet, overdelivering in quality for price is always their primary goal. Aromas of roasted coffee, bacon and black currant. On the palate, plush red fruit with nice structure and acidity.”
The 2015 J. Lohr Estates Seven Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon is dark in color with a bright hue. Layered aromas of cassis and black cherry are accented by an authentic barrel bouquet of hazelnut, cocoa, and toasted pastry. Sturdy tannins strike the palate and finish with the high-toned fruit signature that typifies the Paso Robles growing region.
— Steve Peck, red winemaker
Wine Details
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Composition Blend
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75%
Cabernet Sauvignon
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11%
Petite Sirah
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7%
Petit Verdot
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5%
Merlot
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1%
Cabernet Franc
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1%
other red varieties
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Origin
Paso Robles AVA, San Luis Obispo County, CA
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Cellaring
Balanced upon release, with adequate structure to hold five years or longer.
5 Years -
Food Pairings
Sauteé some mushrooms and snack on a few bruschetta as you relax and barbeque a garlic infused tri-tip roast.
Vintage
We witnessed a fourth consecutive year of low rainfall in the Paso Robles growing region in 2015. These dry conditions followed the extreme climatic trends seen across the entire state of California. Budbreak was early, as is typical in dry years, with vines coming out of dormancy in mid-March. Good growing conditions in April were followed by an unusually cold period in early May that disrupted bloom, resulting in a significant reduction in our Cabernet Sauvignon crop size due to shatter. The majority of our blocks were down in yields, with most vines bearing just half the typical number of berries on each cluster. The small crop ripened readily as fall approached, with this early harvest beginning in earnest on September 15th. Young wines showed explosive fruit and concentration right off the bat, and our enthusiasm for the vintage continued as we assembled the blends prior to barrel aging. As the 2015 Seven Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon approaches its release date, we can appreciate the integration of ripe flavor and mature texture that is the result of J. Lohr’s use of traditional Bordeaux winegrowing techniques.
Vineyards
The predominant fruit for our J. Lohr Estates Seven Oaks Cabernet Sauvignon is grown in our estate vineyards located directly opposite our J. Lohr Paso Robles Wine Center. The Seven Oaks vineyard was originally planted on its own rootstock, utilizing some of the original plantings from indigenous Estrella clones. The soils in our Paso Robles vineyards vary from gravelly clay loam to limestone-based soils over a relatively small parcel of land, and various rootstock and clonal combinations have been used to maximize the expression of each individual site. The different soil types and planting combinations add to the palate of the Seven Oaks Cabernet.
