Syrah

Overall, precipitation for the 2020 season in Paso Robles was on par with its 25-year historical average. The spring saw temperate daytime temperatures which allowed the vines to have good flower bloom, healthy canopy growth, and modest fruit set (after two previous years of above-average crop loads). Late August and September saw record heat waves in California; fortunately, good canopies along with the moderate fruit loads allowed the vines to withstand the heat with little desiccation. Our Syrah was hand-picked from the challenging, gravelly slopes at McCornack. About 15% of the fruit was kept whole cluster and foot-stomped while the remaining 85% was destemmed and whole-berry sorted. The whole clusters and whole berries were combined together in a small, 6-ton open top tank and cold soaked for 4 days prior to fermentation. The 2020 J. Lohr Gesture Syrah was aged for 18 months on light lees in 3rd-fill French oak barrels to retain purity of fruit expression.