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Manage Subscriptions1996 La Jota Cabernet Sauvignon Anniversary Release
Cabernet Sauvignon
- USA
- California
- Napa Valley
- Howell Mountain
Community Tasting Notes 67
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Joealex Likes this wine: 97 points
January 1, 2024 - Color is opaque black without of any sign of old wine fading.
Initally smell was shy and wine needed to be decanted 2 hours to open up buquet.
After 2 hs buquet became intense, sweet, fresh and was like smelling of fresh smashed blackberries, currants, cherries on palm completed with cigar tobacco, you immediately want to try the first sip.
There is sweet core of balck and red fruits which is unique seal/stamp for highest quality wines from Napa region. This sweet core is wrapped by a lot of silk like tannins. Amazing balance of sweet black/red friuts, silk tannins, accidity and structure. Simply WOW!
In aftertaste still there is "lion's claw" whis suggests that wine still remains in excellent condition a few more years.
Wine is concentrated, smooth like texture with silk like tannins, intense with long afterstate ( almost a minute). Elegant style as many top quality wines form legendary Napa period 1990-1997, not as heavy or clumsy or alcoholic as so many Napa caberntes form 2012 till present years.
This is true testament of greatness of Helen Turley winemaking from her prime career and legendary Napa period of 1990-1997.
One of the best wines of my life and probably the best wine of 2024 which has just started .3 people found this helpful Comments (2) -
hcampana Likes this wine: 93 points
July 6, 2023 - From magnum. Wine shows no age in color. Still broodingly dark. The nose is intense, dominated by deep black fruits, but lacked the complexity I expected after keeping it 27 years in the cellar. In the mouth, the wine is full bodied, with tannins almost completely resolved, with a thick fruit core. The finish was slightly hot. It is a bit dissapointing that the wine shows so little evolution after such a long cellar storage. Except for the mellowing of the tannins, this tasted like a 5 year old bottle of Howell Mountain wine. I don't see this wine improving. Drink up.
1 person found this helpful Comment -
ben7210 wrote:
April 28, 2023 - WB DC Offline - Mostly Napa (Bistrot Lepic): Deep ruby. Tobacco cedar and leather on the nose. On the palate very tight, black fruit and tobacco box but drops off fast, short finish. Not sure what to make of this, could be over the hill, could be bottle variation, could be in a weird phase.
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JCGuthrie wrote: flawed
November 29, 2022 - Very slightly corked
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Quinn05 Likes this wine: 97 points
November 9, 2022 - Hundred Acre wine tasting: Blind. Vibrant with lots of fruit. Young fruit too, with most tasters calling 2001. Beautiful focus of the fruit. "Aristocratic", as one of us remarked. Round and smooth. Much more Californian than the Togni. And there is definitely still potential, I'm very curious how this will be in 5 years.
3 people found this helpful Comment
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By Stephen Tanzer
May/June 1998, IWC Issue #78 (link)(La Jota Vineyard Company Cabernet Sauvignon Anniversary Howell Mountain) Subscribe to see review text.
Wine Definition
- Vintage 1996
- Type Red
- Producer La Jota
- Varietal Cabernet Sauvignon
- Designation Anniversary Release
- Vineyard n/a
- Country USA
- Region California
- SubRegion Napa Valley
- Appellation Howell Mountain
Community Holdings
- Pending Delivery 2 (0%)
- In Cellars 528 (55%)
- Consumed 431 (45%)
Food Pairing
Who Likes This Wine
More About This Wine
Articles
- ProducerLa Jota
- VarietyCabernet Sauvignon
- CountryUSA
- RegionCalifornia
- SubRegionNapa Valley
- AppellationHowell Mountain
Add Articles
- Wine1996 La Jota Cabernet Sauvignon Anniversary Release (add)
- FamilyLa Jota Cabernet Sauvignon Anniversary Release (add)
- ProducerLa Jota
- VarietalCabernet Sauvignon
- DesignationAnniversary Release (add)
- CountryUSA
- RegionCalifornia
- SubRegionNapa Valley
- AppellationHowell Mountain