Shotwell Vineyard

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 September, bringing relief to parched grapevines. We’ve coined the term “friendly blender” for our Paso Robles Malbec because its approachable, high-tone red fruit flavor and soft texture give it the ability to blend with and elevate the quality of so many other grape varietals. With this bottling, we are excited to let one of our favorite blocks of Malbec shine on its own. The J. Lohr Shotwell Vineyard Malbec has been aged in water-bent French oak barrels that have low oak aroma impact which allows full expression of varietal character from our stringently farmed vines.