Edition 14 | May 2016

Greetings from the Mountain Wine Club!

While there are many challenges to mountain winegrowing, the high quality and unique intensity of mountain-grown fruit make the struggle worth every effort. With this shipment, we bring you two Napa Valley varietal wines—Cabernet Franc and Malbec—that thrive at the high altitudes of our vineyards on Howell Mountain and Mt. Veeder.

La Jota 2013 Howell Mountain Cabernet Franc comes from a tiny vineyard planted in 1976. This is one of the oldest Cabernet Franc vineyards in Napa Valley. Our Howell Mountain Cabernet Franc grapes produce wines of rich dark blackberry character, with iron-rich mountain soils contributing significant density on the palate.

Mt. Brave 2013 Mt. Veeder Malbec is sourced from Mt. Veeder on the western flank of Napa Valley. Mt. Veeder has been planted to wine grapes since the early 1860s. This fully ripened Malbec reveals deep blackberry, plum and cherry fruit characters supported by good acidity and smooth tannins.

The 2013 vintage is considered by many to be one of the finest in recent history, with early budbreak, steady summer weather and ideal harvest conditions.