La Jota Howell Mountain Merlot

The La Jota Vineyard lies high upon a volcanic plateau, looking east over Napa Valley. This wine is sourced from the winery’s estate and from nearby W.S. Keyes Vineyard, and they capture the intense fruit and mineral complexity of these cool-climate origins. Surrounded by pine, fir, oak and madrone trees, the estate stands out because of its cool, windswept climate. Here we look to vineyard blocks that produce soft-textured Cabernet Sauvignon for wines of earlier approachability, and where the decomposed granite soils of our W.S. Keyes Vineyard impart a pop of bright fruit character and broader tannins. The wine encompasses all that is Mountain Merlot with a structure to relish. Notes of espresso, dark chocolate, and toast follow ripe blackberry, minerality, and weight on the palate. Merlot is a perfect match for beef and other medium-heavy dishes. It pairs wonderfully with rich, red pasta sauces, pork, turkey, beef, veal, pheasant, and garden salads. Merlot is also an excellent compliment to chocolate.