2022 J. Lohr Gesture GSM Rhone Blend
The 2022 J. Lohr Gesture GSM is a traditional southern Rhône-inspired blend. It showcases luscious strawberry and currant aromas from its Grenache component, balanced with black pepper, cola, and savory notes from Syrah and Mourvèdre. On the palate, bing cherry and cranberry flavors transition to an old-world gravelly finish.
— Brenden Wood, red winemaker and Steve Peck, vp winemaking
Wine Details
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Composition Blend
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83%
Grenache
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16%
Syrah
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1%
Mourvèdre
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Origin
Paso Robles Adelaida District, San Luis Obispo County, CA
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Food Pairings
Our J. Lohr Gesture GSM is very food-versatile. This blend complements a variety of dishes, from an onion tart to grilled lamb, spicy crab cakes, or a savory vegetable stew.
Vineyard & Vintage
The J. Lohr Gesture GSM comes from plantings at our J. Lohr Stairway Vineyard located in the Adelaida District. Slopes can be as much as 50% to 75% at this ranch; hiking up the vine rows is leg-burning and requires caution when traversing the steep, step-like chalk rocks. Only crawler tractors can be used to safely farm this site. This part of Paso Robles is an ancient uplifted seabed so fossilized that seashells are often found in the ground - even though the vineyard is perched at 1,500 foot average elevation. Weather at J. Lohr Stairway Vineyard is ideal for growing Rhône grape varieties. Daytime high temperatures are moderate here, due to early afternoon breezes from the nearby Pacific Ocean just 13 miles away.
Paso Robles experienced a dry winter in 2022. Overall, rainfall for the vintage was only 65% of the 25-year historical average in the region. Weather was quite cool during budbreak in the month of April, with a few nights briefly dipping below freezing. However, plenty of warm, sunny days followed from spring through completion of veraison in early August. An unprecedented 10-day heat wave occurred in early September that accelerated berry ripeness and Brix accumulation. Thankfully, unusually cool, cloudy weather and a little bit of drizzle came in mid-September, bringing relief to parched grapevines. Grenache, Syrah, and Mourvèdre were hand- picked from the challenging, gravelly slopes of our J. Lohr Stairway Vineyard. 80% of the Grenache for this blend was destemmed and whole-berry sorted into a small 10-ton open-top tank. The remaining 20% was included as whole clusters. The fruit was cold- soaked for 4 days, then fermented on skins for 8 days prior to pressing. The final blend is comprised of 83% Grenache, 16% Syrah, and 1% Mourvèdre. The wine was aged for 8 months on light lees in neutral 500-liter French oak puncheons.
