August 6, 2022 - Drinking really well, still integrated and little signs of aging.
August 5, 2022 - Opened with friends at Q restaurant in Portland, Oregon. A nice aged California Cabernet - the color is still great, fruity but also savory as it sat in the glass. It’s probably a good idea to drink soon.
September 22, 2020 - There is no better, mature, classic California Cabernet Sauvignon for the money than these older La Jota Anniversary wines. The wine is concentrated, round, and packed with mouth-filling layers ripe, blackberries, dark red fruits, tobacco leaf, smoke, herbs and scorched earth. The character-filled finish has staying power. I am sure there is at least another decade left in the tank here.
May 23, 2020 - Same as last note.
April 5, 2020 - Much darker Then expected, even for HM. Looks more like something from the early 2000’s. Only a hint of lighting at the edges. The nose eventually developed, after a couple of hours into a fairly powerful bouquet of red fruits that went from more sweet (think cherry rhubarb pie with mint) to more savory and slightly darker fruited as it aired with notes of burnt embers/pain grille, high class pipe tobacco, cassis and earth. Palate ended up fairly smooth and balanced after it opened, where as it started out a bit acidic. The finish was long and detailed. What a couple of hours can make. It it went from a semi-boring singular typical Cabernet to a highly complex detailed expression of what Howell Mountain can do at its best.
January 14, 2018 - Youthful and expressive nose. An outstanding showing as it remains in a long drinking window.
August 17, 2017 - This wine was good from the moment I pulled the cork and it just got better. Lots of cassis Cabernet character, graphite, sweet fruit but very pure and not at all jammy. Clearly from a noble vintage, this could be Pauillac if tasted blind - and a good one at that. No sign of it tiring either. Delicious.
September 1, 2015 - WTDS at The Kenwood With Some Older Gems (The Kenwood, Mpls, MN): VEry dark red/purple color; drank 1+ glass over 90 minutes. This started off a bit slow, actually it seemed youthful, and picked up a tremendous amount of steam over 20 minutes or so. The nose just explodes and showed some old world character and depth along with classic mountain black and blue fruit of cassis and boysenberry. The palate has great acidity that bouys the nice blueberry, cassis, and black cherry fruits, with minerals and oak, tangy, earthy, long and well integrated. While this was youthful, it clearly is ready and performs so well. Loved it. 93+ to 94pts.
September 1, 2015 - While not in the stratosphere great this did not disappoint. Double decanted shortly before leaving for The Kenwood. Left cork in after arrival and drank around 8:30PM. Classic CA BDX blend that even drank a little young???? Loved it. Paid $125 four months ago from HDH.
October 4, 2014 - Intense tobacco-edged nose and palate. Holding up quite well for a 22 year old wine. Good acid and still some tannin. Tight upon opening and took at least an hour to open up to the extent it did. Was then lovely but a tad astringent and not really complex.