2023 marks our 125th anniversary producing small-lot mountain wines from our home on Howell Mountain. To celebrate this historic milestone, we opened our cellar to showcase the wines and the stories that represent a distinct piece of history.
Only 5 3L Jeroboam bottles are available only through February 6, 2023.
We’re kicking things off by taking things back to when our current winemaker’s journey begins. Our first library release commemorates our Winemaker Chris Carpenter’s first harvest at La Jota Vineyard Co. The year: 2005. The vintage: known as being cooler with a wet start, moderate conditions that allowed our grapes to slowly ripen while developing their signature Howell Mountain complexity, and for the chilly temperatures during harvest.
Upon release, our 2005 Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon combined notable elegance with rich, mountain-fruit intensity. Ripe mountain blackberry, wild strawberry, forest-earth aromas lead to an expansive palate of dark cassis, espresso bean and sweet herb. And now with almost 20 years of age, this wine shines with its softly-aged mountain tannins. We barrel-aged the wine in our winery’s caves to mature flavors and weave in nuances of toasty French oak (22 months in French oak, 90% new). Cabernet Sauvignon dominant (90%), a small blend of Merlot (7%) enhances the wine’s plush texture and broad tannins, while a dash of Petit Verdot (3%) adds spice. To fully capture the wine’s complex flavors, we bottled it without fining or filtration.
In short, this exclusive library release has all of the Howell Mountain hallmarks laced with Chris Carpenter’s signature style.
