Harvest is Coming, Harvest is Coming!

It Takes a Wine Village to make every bottle of inspired J, especially during harvest.  We are so appreciative of our adoring J Fans that we want to share the hard-working J Harvest Team Members that bring your favorite bottles of J to your table for sharing with family and friends. 

J Team Member: Jose

Position at J: Production Maintenance Worker

Years working on the J Team: 9 Years

Favorite J Wine: J Vineyards Robert Thomas Pinot Noir

Jose’s inspiration comes from the J family and extends to his personal family.  Jose says, “the J family provides me great opportunities allowing me to share those wonderful opportunities with my family, I am blessed.”

Jose’s J team members really admire him as he is always very helpful beyond his job as a production maintenance worker, and he is a great guy to have on the team.  Jose says, “I may be very shy at times, but my team members know I have very high work ethics, and I love my job as a production maintenance worker and beyond whatever else needs to be taken care of year round for production and harvest.  I am always busy at my job and I am always learning something new each harvest, I think the winemaking process is very cool from the vineyards to the bottle and I am glad to be a part of it at J.”

Jose loves spending quality time with his wife and three children – “Me and my family love going to the river, it is a great outing for all of us to share a lot of fun and laughter together.”

Jose says, “a special memory I have from this year was when our Production Director and Production Manager organized and cooked a delicious BBQ for the entire production team after we successfully finished bottling the J California Pinot Gris, I felt much appreciated, again like a J family member.”

Jose is very significant to the J production team as he always goes out of his way to get the job done on a daily basis, and with a smile on his face.  Thanks Jose, J Vineyards & Winery is so fortunate to have you in the J family!

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Cheers,

J Vineyards & Winery

J Vineyards & Winery Visits The London West Hollywood, California!

Sonoma Vintners Visit The London West Hollywood, California

By Nancy Jo Saper (L.A. Examiner), that includes J Winemaker Melissa Stackhouse in an interview & video.

J Winemaker Melissa Stackhouse

The Sonoma Vintners Association was having a wine tasting event at The London West Hollywood recently. A good wine showcases a story. While tasting at The London, I was fortunate to experience superb storytellers and wines that drew me in completely. I spoke with some of the organizers, wine makers, and marketers and am delighted to share their profound experience and passion with you.

Major Sonoma wineries such as the exceptional J Vineyards and Winery were represented at the event as well. Judy Jordan, daughter of Tom Jordan (the founder of great California wines and Jordan Winery), created her own successful brand with J Vineyards and Winery. They have a unique range of wines and exceptional sparklings.

 

This day they brought their Sparkling Rose, which is a masterpiece. The lushness of this sparkling lingers on the tongue and has balance and elegance combined. To know a good sparkling wine and or Champagne is its tiny bubbles. J Rose is a standout, it is engaging, lively with fresh fruit notes and a pleasurable finish that lingers.

J Pinot Noir is another winning wine under J winemaker Melissa Stackhouse. This bountiful wine has layers of texture with a rustic quality that is quite fun to drink. The intensity of fig, dark cherries, dark plum and cocoa emerge on your palette. J Pinot Noir can be sipped with a variety of culinary selections, a little chocolate compliments the wines rich character and it is perfect to drink on its own.

J Chardonnay makes your mouth water with sensual flavors of lemon-peel and shortbread. The creaminess and flavors are inviting. J also makes a J Pear Liqueur that will knock your socks off. The pure pear essence, vanilla aromas and butterscotch silkiness drape your palette eloquently. It has cognac tenacity with a feminine touch. Melissa is an exceptional artisan and shares insight into all things J!

NJ: Speak a little bit as a winemaker as to how it is when you are creating a wine.

MS: For me winemaking has always been incredibly collaborative, so it’s not just about one person, it’s about many people coming together to make a product. That means the vineyard crew, the winemaking team, sales and marketing and PR, bringing it all together. As far as winemaking goes I’m more hands-off. We really try to make sure the fruit is rock solid when we box the wine.

NJ: Let’s hear a little bit about the grapes that you’re growing and how particular you have to be to create the wines that you produce.

MS: I think if there’s any time to micromanage my day it’s in the vineyards and you also need to have a couple plans. When harvest unfolds you never really know what you’re going to get, so we usually go in with a plan A, and that’s if everything works out, and then a plan B, and a plan C if the weather turns extreme and so we try to just be present in the vineyard, be out there and micromanage it up front and we hopefully can bring solid fruit in.

J Nicole's Vineyard

NJ: Share a little bit about your wines. Especially about your Pinot Noir, about your sparkling Rose, which is wonderful, and your J Pear after dinner drink which is superb.

MS: The J Brut Rose sparkling wine is about 65% Pinot Noir and the balance is mostly Chardonnay a little bit of Meunier as well. We’ve just put it in a new package; it’s a sexy little package - clear glass with a swoopy J on the front. It’s a sexy wine, a brilliant, nice pink color. It’s a wine that’s really vivid in strawberry, grapefruit, very crisp, very light, and I think a perfect summer wine.

NJ: You have little bubbles, and that’s one thing when you’re looking for a good champagne or sparkling, you want little bubbles bubbling up to the top and that is what J does.

MS: Right, it’s got what we call formability. It’s got little bubbles and that’s a good thing and it’s not too fruity and really not too sweet either. And that’s the thing with wine; it can be fruit forward without being sweet. And the Pinot Noir is, for me mostly plum and cherry, a little bit of tobacco, just a kiss of rustic-ness. I love Pinot Noir and have been making it for many many years.

NJ: It’s very popular right now too and I think California Pinot Noir has more substance than when you think of a light Pinot Noir of days gone by.

MS: Yeah, especially in the Russian River Valley- that Pinot Noir is a little more brooding, it’s darker fruit - it’s more of a Cabernet wine drinker’s Pinot.

NJ: What else would you say regarding J Vineyards and the wines that you produce and being a woman owned vineyard and a woman winemaker? That also is an exceptional thing.

Judy Jordan, J Founder & President

MS: Well, Judy’s a cool lady. She has owned the winery for 25 years, which is amazing to me. She founded the brand when she was 25 years old and I think back to when I was 25 years old and I can’t imagine being mature enough to do that. She’s a neat lady and I feel very proud to make wine for her.

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Cheers,

J Vineyards & Winery

Harvest is Coming, Harvest is Coming!

It Takes a Wine Village to make every bottle of inspired J, especially during harvest.  We are so appreciative of our adoring J Fans that we want to share the hard-working J Harvest Team Members that bring your favorite bottles of J to your table for sharing with family and friends. 

J Team Member: Genaro

Position at J: Production Worker

Years working on the J Team: 9 Months

Favorite J Wine: J Cuvée 20

Genaro’s J production team members inspire him every day. Genaro says, “there is such great teamwork at J and everyone makes me feel like I am part of the entire J family, it makes me feel valuable to be a part of J.”

His coworkers view Genaro as a very hard production worker who can be quite funny, which helps the day at J go by without a hitch.  Genaro says, “J is a very fun environment to work in, I am a hands-on type of person so I can learn new procedures easily which helps out the entire production team.”  Genaro says he loves working at J because “it has a great family feeling among all the J team members.”

When Genaro is not at J working hard, he loves to go bass fishing with his son at Lake Sonoma in Healdsburg – “This is my favorite enjoyment with my son.”

Genaro has never worked at a winery that makes sparkling wine and is amazed at the long hours that go into producing sparkling wine.  Genaro says, “the J Cuvee 20 is my favorite J wine, so being involved in the disgorging process with the J Cuvee 20 is very cool. The best part is when the crown cap and lees are removed without spilling any sparkling wine.”

Genaro may be the new J kid on the block, but he is a sparkling success and an adored and valued J team member.  Cheers to you Genaro!

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Cheers,

J Vineyards & Winery

Harvest is Coming, Harvest is Coming!

It Takes a Wine Village to make every bottle of inspired J, especially during harvest.  We are so appreciative of our adoring J Fans that we want to share the hard-working J Harvest Team Members that bring your favorite bottles of J to your table for sharing with family and friends.

J Team Member: Heriberto

Position at J: Cellar Worker

Years working on the J Team: One

Favorite J Wine: Pinot Gris

Heriberto —or “Berto”, as we know him best—has been on the J Team for just over a year now. According to fellow coworkers, Berto is the one everyone looks to for motivation to finish the job after a long day at work.  He’s best known on the J Team for his happy and kind-hearted personality.

Berto is first and foremost a family man so, when he’s not working at J, he’s spending lots of time with his wife and kids at home. He loves attending his kids’ soccer games and going to their favorite post-game family dinner spot: Olive Garden.

Berto says, “I’m really interested in the winemaking process as a whole. There’s so much that goes into making one bottle of J wine and it’s especially rewarding to see the product of all of our hard work!”

Berto joined our Team because he enjoys the work environment at J; he says, “everyone I work with here is so friendly and that makes coming to work in the mornings much easier.” He’s a big fan of the lunch break because he likes to “take time to relax and prepare for the second half of the day”.

Berto is excited about this year’s harvest because he’ll be dealing with more grapes and more responsibilities.

We love you, Berto!!

CLUB J | DIRECTIONS | EVENT CALENDAR | GIFT BOUTIQUE | WINE SHOP

Cheers,

J Vineyards & Winery

Harvest is Coming, Harvest is Coming!

It Takes a Wine Village to make every bottle of inspired J, especially during harvest.  We are so appreciative of our adoring J Fans that we want to share the hard-working J Harvest Team Members that bring your favorite bottles of J to your table for sharing with family and friends. 

J Team Member: Jeff
Position at J: Cellar Worker
Years working on the J Team: One
Favorite J Wine: Brut Rose

His coworkers keep Jeff inspired throughout the day. Jeff says, “when everyone on the cellar team is working hard, I strive to match their work ethic and energy so we can get things done as best we can.”

He is a devoted fan of the San Francisco 49ers and Giants – “I’m a big sports events guy and I try to attend games with my buds whenever I can.”

Jeff is 23 now; he’s been working since he was 15 and has worked 15 different jobs. Jeff knew his calling was winemaking when he worked on his first harvest -- “It was hard work but also lots of fun, so I knew I wanted to be a part of the harvest energy and wine industry for the rest of my life.”

It’s an absolute pleasure to have someone as dependable and hardworking as Jeff on our J Team. Jeff is especially recognized for his no-nonsense and straight-to-the-punch humor (which makes all of our days at work more enjoyable, of course). Jeff says he loves working at J because “the name carries; when I tell people I work at J, they recognize the brand quality and are excited for me!”

Jeff’s favorite time of the day is during those first two hours in the morning when he’s most engaged, energized, and busy.

Thanks for all of your hard work, Jeff; you’re an extremely valuable member of our team!

CLUB J | DIRECTIONS | EVENT CALENDAR | GIFT BOUTIQUE | WINE SHOP

Cheers,

J Vineyards & Winery

Harvest is Coming, Harvest is Coming!

It Takes a Wine Village to make every bottle of inspired J, especially during harvest.  We are so appreciative of our adoring J Fans that we want to share the hard-working J Harvest Team Members that bring your favorite bottles of J to your table for sharing with family and friends. 

J Team Member: Edilberto (aka Eddie)

Position at J: Cellar Worker

Years Working on the J Team: Four

Favorite J Wine: Nicole’s Vineyard Pinot Noir

Eddie’s  two top priorities when working in the cellar are quality and improvement. He’s been passionate about winemaking since his first day at J. We consider ourselves incredibly lucky to have him on our team because Eddie is, as many coworkers and friends describe him, one the most hardworking and respectful guys out there. Eddie says his favorite aspect of working at J is that “as a team, we are all looking to make improvements for our employees and customers”. 

When Eddie is not working hard in the cellar, he’s usually at home watching movies with his wife. He LOVES comedy movies of all sorts and also spends a good portion of time playing for his soccer team which competes in a local Sonoma County league.

Eddie is very excited for this year’s harvest because he wants to see (or taste, rather) the outcome of all of his and his coworkers’ hard work. Eddie says “we’ve made a lot of great improvements this year and I can’t wait to taste the result.”

Eddie, we’re honored to have you on our team for the fourth year and we look forward to many more years to come!!

 CLUB J | DIRECTIONS | EVENT CALENDAR | GIFT BOUTIQUE | WINE SHOP

Cheers,

J Vineyards & Winery