2015 J. Lohr Vineyard Series Tower Road Petite Sirah
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Wine Enthusiast Advance Buying Guide, July 2018
- “Intriguing, deep and dark on the nose, this bottling offers aromas of root beer, black-cherry sauce and vanilla. Framed by upright yet polished tannins on the palate, fresh flavors of blackberry and blueberry are lifted by vanilla spice. This is an easy-to-like, yet heavy-duty, wine.” -Matt Kettmann
An inviting bouquet of toasted pastry frames the dark fruit characters of blackberry and olallieberry on the palate. Our gentle approach to winemaking delivers a rich and dense tannin structure that doesn’t disappoint.
— Steve Peck, Director of Winemaking
Wine Details
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Composition Blend
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99%
Petite Sirah
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1%
Syrah
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Origin
Paso Robles AVA, San Luis Obispo County, CA
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Cellaring
This dense wine opens up early with a splash-decant, and should develop in the bottle for up to 8 years.
8 Years -
Food Pairings
Pairs well with aromatic herbs and pan-seared meat dishes such as rosemary lamb chops with roasted fennel.
Vintage
The 2015 vintage presented its own unique challenges for Tower Road Petite Sirah. Budbreak occurred in mid-March, which is on the early side. Fair weather through April was followed by an unusually cold period for flowering in the first half of May. Berry set was prolonged and varied with Petit Sirah, setting a better crop than most other varieties, but spread out over an extended period of time. Color change occurred in late July under nice warm (not hot) temperatures. Veraison to harvest was characterized by alternating periods of five days or so with temperatures in the 80s and then five days over 100°F. We alignedthe picking of our three vineyard blocks at the end of each cooling cycle to capture the best flavors in the fruit.
Vineyards
In the vineyards surrounding Tower Road, in the Estrella and San Miguel districts of Paso Robles, our Petite Sirah thrives on the well-drained yet heavier clay soils of the area. The rarity of autumn rains in Paso Robles allows this tight-clustered variety to reach full maturity almost every year, without the risk of bunch-rot that exists in damper regions of the state and in Europe. Our ripening program requires that we apply netting to the vines in August to assure that birds don’t overfeed on this especially flavorful grape before harvest. Intense summer sun and very warm daytime temperatures in Paso Robles are balanced by the gentle afternoon breezes that creep in from the Monterey Bay to the north and from the Templeton Gap to the west. These winds cool the area by as much as fifty degrees by early morning, preserving the acidity and bright fruit character of our Petite Sirah.
