Leading Winemaking Efforts for Lake Sonoma Winery and Valley of the Moon
SONOMA, CA (January 19, 2022) – West Coast Wine Partners, the parent company of Sonoma Valley based Lake Sonoma Winery and Valley of the Moon, is pleased to announce the first wine releases from new winemaker Jaime “JJ” Dowell who joined the company in Spring of 2021.
JJ Dowell’s robust resume includes winemaking roles with Round Pond Estate and Alpha Omega Winery, both located in Rutherford, Napa Valley, as well as Bonny Doon Vineyards in Santa Cruz and Villa Maria Estate in Blenheim, New Zealand.
“I am thrilled to be making wine in one of my favorite growing regions, Sonoma County,” said JJ. “The diversity of this area and the breadth of varietals I get to make for both Lake Sonoma Winery and Valley of the Moon is a dream – I feel like a kid in a candy store,” she added.
After receiving her degree in Viticulture and Enology from the University of California, Davis, JJ took a near decade-long detour to manage and operate her family’s art gallery in the East Bay. She returned to winemaking on a part-time basis for Crooked Vine & Stony Ridge Winery in the Livermore Valley. Soon thereafter, she decided to follow her real passion as a full-time winemaker. Her winemaking career has thrived throughout the two decades since.
“We are thrilled to have JJ’s deft winemaking hand on our team in Sonoma,” said Tony Stewart, Owner, West Coast Wine Partners. “She is creative, determined and dedicated to her craft and we know she will be a fantastic partner; not only in crafting phenomenal wine but also in growing and managing our wine portfolio,” he added.
Born in San Diego, JJ is a proud fifth-generation Californian. When she is not busy driving through vineyards, adding yeast to harvested grapes to start fermentation or sitting at the blending table before bottling, she is practicing Ashtanga yoga, tending to her succulent garden or hiking with her two rescue dogs, Izzy and Emma-Roo.
The Stewart Family, a third-generation pioneering wine family, first planted vines at their Okanagan Valley estate in 1961. With more than a half-century of experience in viticulture and winemaking, the family appreciates the intricacies of farming premium vineyards to craft fine wine and brings together a portfolio of luxury wine brands including Valley of the Moon, Lake Sonoma Winery, Plume and Quails’ Gate Winery. Learn more at sfewine.com.
