Page 111 - SLO Visitors Guide Spring 2024

Wine Tasting
Jerry Lohr’s pioneering spirit helped establish the Paso Robles wine region
‘Heritage and authenticity are at the core of our Lohr family business’
Founded five decades ago and still family-owned and oper- ated, J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines
has established itself as one of the industry’s most respected wine brands. J. Lohr wines began in
the late 1960s when Jerry Lohr launched an extensive investiga- tion of California grape-growing regions, searching for the ideal lo- cation for his first vineyard. Raised on a South Dakota farm; Jerry’s ag- ricultural roots armed him with an “innate sense for the relationship between climate, soil, and location.” His research and instincts led him to the Central Coast, an area just beginning to explore its potential for wine growing.
In the early 1970s, he chose Monterey County’s Arroyo Seco district for its cool, windy climate and rocky soils as ideal for char- donnay. In the 1980s,
he recognized the
potential of
Paso Robles
for growing
Bordeaux
varietals,
especially
cabernet
sauvi-
gnon—giv-
en the area’s
rich soils and
dramatic tem-
perature swings
between warm days
and cool nights. He began planting cabernet sauvignon and other red varieties in the Paso Robles region in 1986, and the production facility was opened in 1988.
slovisitorsguide.com
Enjoy views of J. Lohr Paso Robles vineyards.
Jerry Lohr’s career continues in partnership with his children and co-owners Steve, Cynthia, and Lawrence.
“Heritage and authenticity are at the core of our Lohr family business – we took my father’s original vision for a turn-of- the-century schoolhouse and brought it to the modern-day,” said Co-owner and Chief Brand
Officer Cynthia Lohr. “We’ve juxtaposed the warmth
of Jerry’s South Dakota childhood
family home with gorgeous
plum and sage decorative textures that set off the
original wain- scoting. We
are illuminating our collectible bot-
tlings within a top- of-the-line glass wine
case and seating our guests at high-top tables crafted from our barrels so that guests can enjoy their sampling overlooking our Home Ranch vineyards.”
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