A Central Figure of the Central Coast: J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines

For nearly 50 years, J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines has crafted approachable, food-friendly wines from some of the best real estate California has to offer, with vineyards in Monterey, Paso Robles, and St. Helena.

Jerry Lohr is a California winemaking legend and helped established the Central Coast as one of the premier regions to grow wine. Jerry had a knack for matching crops with soils and climate, which made him a force within the winemaking community. In 2017, Jerry was bestowed with the Wine Enthusiast’s prestigious “American Wine Legend” honor.

In 1972, Jerry Lohr first began planting vines in Greenfield in Monterey County, California. Pictured here is Jerry’s late wife, Carol Lohr, along with the winery’s current leadership team, Steve Lohr, CEO, Cynthia Lohr, CBO, and Lawrence Lohr, COO, Vineyards.

The Arroyo Seco Appellation in Monterey has one of California’s longest growing seasons. The winds and fog from nearby Monterey Bay conveniently reduce daytime temps, allowing for perfect winegrowing conditions.

Kristen Barnhisel is tasked with crafting white wines at J. Lohr’s state-of-the-art winery in Greenfield. Barnhisel’s winemaking resume reaches all corners of the world and she has used her vast experience to meld new techniques as well as traditional methods to produce J. Lohr’s award-winning white wines.

Against the beautiful backdrop of the Paso Robles region, Brenden Wood, Red Winemaker, sets the bar high for reds coming out of the region. In the Paso Robles appellation, the extreme temperature difference between day and night allow for ideal growing conditions for J. Lohr’s big reds, including their cabs, merlots, petit verdots, cab francs, and malbecs.

J. Lohr demonstrates a unique passion for sustainable farming and stays laser-focused on what they call the “Three E’s” of sustainability: economic feasibility, environment, and social equity. In 2020, J. Lohr received the Green Medal Leader Award from the California Sustainable Winegrowing Alliance — the highest possible sustainability honor a California winery can achieve.

The J. Lohr Signature Cabernet Sauvignon is a tribute to Jerry’s pioneering efforts in the Paso Robles region.

“My signature on the label indicates that this wine is a personal statement for me, looking to encompass three decades of experience and history in a single bottle.” — Jerry Lohr

Founded five decades ago and still family-owned and operated today, J. Lohr Vineyards & Wines is considered by anyone who knows wine to be one of the industry’s most-respected brands. The winery’s successes over the years are a testament to the family’s shared passion to grow outstanding wines that represented the best the Central Coast has to offer.

Today, Lawrence Lohr, Cynthia Lohr, and Steve Lohr carry on Jerry’s legacy and will continue to deliver high-quality wines to consumers around the world for generations to come.