750 ml

The inspiration behind this wine was to explore these often underappreciated varieties and show how the whole can be greater than the sum of the parts. Each variety plays a different role. This year the Chenin blanc was stellar and serves as the heart of the wine.

February Release - limited quantities available only through March 6, 2023

Our February library release features a vintage for the record books– 2004 was one of the earliest harvests in memory. Budbreak occurred earlier than usual and heat spells throughout the growing season led to an early harvest. Regarded as a very good, warm vintage with smaller-than-average yields. With less than 200 cases produced, there wasn’t much wine to begin with– which has made this wine hard to get over the past 20 years– but we held on to the last few, precious cases. 

Planted in 1976 next to our 125-year-old stone winery, the Cabernet Franc vines of our Winery block are regarded as some of the oldest of its variety in all of Napa Valley. Making this wine even more special– the 2004 vintage was also the first year winemaker Chris Carpenter blended and released this classic Bordeaux variety (95% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon) which balances the fruit, botanicals, and minerality of Howell Mountain.  

Even after 20 years of bottle age, the 2004 Howell Mountain Cabernet Franc features aromatics of anise, dark cherry, bittersweet chocolate, and intense minerality that transition to bright flavors of pomegranate and red cherry which will linger on your palate. This is a wine aged perfectly for this moment and one that you can enjoy today.  

January Release - limited quantities 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. Limited quantities across multiple bottle sizes– standard 750ml, 1.5L magnums, 3L, and 6L– are available only through February 6, 2023.