Courtney Jochner Executive Vice President Shadowbrook Winery
Tim Jochner Winemaster- Shadowbrook Winery
** May join in Mark Lavezzoli Chief Winemaker
Shadowbrook Winery- 3739 Shadowbrook Court, Walnut Creek,
www.shadowbrookwinery.com 925-988-WINE (9463)

September 24, 2006 marked the first crush done entirely at Shadowbrook Winery's new facility.

Yes it's a hobby gone wild. My wife and I (Courtney) were born, raised in WC, (not many have lived here all their lives) we were tired of planting our hillside with wild flowers so we planted grapes. Learned to make wine and it was a great hobby. We come to find out that our beloved Walnut Festival was actually a grape carnival celebrating the areas most profitable Ag. Crop and that the Martinelli family produced about 500,000 gallons of wine in the foothills of Mt. Diablo pre prohibition. So we built a winery and got approval to do 1000 cases per year. The concept is simple; we grow all the fruit on site in Walnut Creek and try to produce a world class product. We want to bring Walnut Creek back to its roots as the preeminent grape growing region and sell a local product to local people and restaurants. Make WC proud. My day job is in Financial services.

Chief winemaker Mark Lavezzoli and I combine very traditional and Innovative wine craftsmanship. Traditionally a first year’s harvest will produce light and mild wine. To combat this outcome we utilized a technique called "extended maceration" on each varietal. This process requires stainless steel floating lid fermenters and "hands on" monitoring and testing. We then pressed the grapes after approximately 21 days and aged the wine in French and American oak barrels. Both Mark and I are extremely excited about Walnut Creek’s potential in producing a first class wine. All of our varietals are showing quite well so early in the process.

Mark Lavezzoli’s winemaking heritage dates back to the early 1900’s in the mountain towns of Trigilio and Ottone, just north of Genoa, Italy. It was there that his grandfather created marvelous blends from his estate grown vines, supplying the surrounding towns with fine Lavezzoli vintages. This winemaking heritage has been passed down through the family and continues today through Mark’s efforts to improve and master this seductive craft. A graduate of UC Davis, Mark continues to master his winemaking skills through continued education, enabling him to craft high end wines for your pleasure. Since his first "crush" in 1993 with a small group of like minded wine enthusiasts, he has moved on to help Shadowbrook Vineyards create a bounty of hand crafted wines made with care. Mark prefers a smaller boutique winery with a very hands-on approach. The ability to be involved with the wines on a daily basis ensures that the wine will be of the highest of quality when served at your table.

Since he is part Irish, he also can brew a very nice dark ale or a traditional stout. However, with the majority of his blood being Italian, his major love is crafting wines first for Shadowbrook, and then for your ultimate pleasure. - Tim Jochner, Winemaster.

A TASTE OF CALIFORNIA
21TH ANNUAL WINE, FOOD & BEER FESTIVAL SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2004, 1:00 - 4:00 P.M.

Wine and Food Festival at the Oakland Museum
Presented by the Oakland Rotary
Wine and food vendors from the East Bay offered up the best in gastronomical delights, and Rotary enjoyed its #1 fundraising activity of the year.
"Your chardonnay wins Best of Show!"

Posted on Friday, May 14, 2004

Walnut Creek landowner seeks winery By Theresa Harrington
CONTRA COSTA TIMES

If Tim Jochner's dream comes true, he and his business partners will be making and selling wine with a Walnut Creek label in the next few years.
"We're trying to return the Mount Diablo foothills to their roots, when one-third of agriculture was grapes," said Jochner, 38, who wants to build a small winery across the street from his Shadowbrook Court home in the North Gate area.
Vineyards and wineries dotted the region in the late 1800s and early 1900s, before most closed during Prohibition, he said. Today, making a profit on a winery supplied by grapes grown on expensive Walnut Creek land would be impossible.
"It would take 10 years, selling bottles for about $300 each, just to pay for the land," Jochner said, noting that property in the North Gate area can cost up to $1 million per acre.
To get around that, Jochner wants to make wine from grapes grown by local homeowners, as well as from his own 1,700 vines. He plans to make special labels for the wine, noting whose grapes were used to produce it, and thinks downtown restaurants and diners would snap up the home-grown vintages.
But a North Gate Specific Plan, developed in 1991 to preserve the rural and agricultural area between Mount Diablo and suburban neighborhoods, does not allow wineries. To move forward, Jochner needs the county Board of Supervisors and the Walnut Creek City Council, which jointly regulate development in the area, to amend the plan.
The plan originally allowed homes, parks and recreation facilities, child care centers, horse stables and riding academies, and kennels. It was amended four years ago to allow small commercial nurseries.
Planning Commissioner Bob Pickett helped evaluate plans for the Merlot Nursery on North Gate Road before the amendment was adopted.
    While he declined to comment on the proposed winery without more information, he said new developments must typically prove that they will not present nuisances such as noise, traffic and odors to the surrounding neighborhood.