Edition 36 | November 2021

Hello Mountain Wine Club!

For every MWC shipment we hand select the wines to share with you, and the November shipment is always just a little more fun. We go through our cellar and choose from those bottles that we feel would be a perfect pairing for your holiday feasts or be the most impressive gift to give the wine lover on your list. We hope you enjoy this year’s selection as much as we do.

This shipment, we are bringing you extremely limited library selections from our mountain vineyards – the 2011 Mt. Brave Mt. Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon and the 2012 La Jota Vineyard Co. Howell Mountain Merlot. These two wines have been aging in our cellar and the time is perfect to enjoy them.

The 2011 growing season was a difficult one with cooler, wetter weather, however our Mt. Brave Vineyard was perfectly placed for success. As I wrote upon the vintage release, “That early morning sun, coming to the mountain vineyards without the shield of fog, kicks off the ripening process hours before its counterparts on the lower altitudes giving our vineyards a leg up on difficult conditions.”

In contrast, the following year in 2012 was near perfect, with ideal spring budbreak and warm steady days balanced by cool nights. These superb conditions continued into the fall, resulting in optimal ripening conditions at harvest.

As we reflect on the year gone by, and plan for the next, we wish you a very happy holiday season and hope to see you in Napa Valley soon.

Peace,

Winemaker Chris Carpenter

2011 Mt. Brave
Cabernet Sauvignon

Mt. Veeder, Napa Valley, CA

“I recently revisited this Cabernet and was incredibly pleased with its development. It’s showing a youthful finesse and a beautiful aromatic complexity of dark fruits, bittersweet chocolate, and Asian spice. It carries a powerful mid-palate presence and the length and finish are incredibly profound.”

Winemaker Chris Carpenter

Composition

94% Cabernet Sauvignon
3% Merlot
3% Cabernet Franc

Vineyard

Mt. Brave Vineyard

Appellation

Mt. Veeder, Napa Valley

Aging

19 months in French oak (91% new)

2011 Mt. Brave Mt. Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon

2012 La Jota Vineyard Co.
Merlot

Howell Mountain, Napa Valley, CA

“On the nose aromas of olive tapenade, roasted almonds, and cocoa powder.  The palate carries a silky texture, toast tones, and a cherry-meets-rhubarb pie base. It’s flat-out gorgeous!”

Winemaker Chris Carpenter

Composition

100% Merlot

Vineyard

La Jota Estate Vineyard
& W.S. Keyes Vineyard

Appellation

Howell Mountain, Napa Valley

Aging

20 months in French oak (86% new)

2012 La Jota Howell Mountain Merlot