La Jota Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon 2011

Professional Ratings

• 94 Decanter

  Aromas of dark roast coffee, oiled cedar, bramble and blackberry. A delicious combination of plush fruit, energetic acidity and rusticity on the palate, with a surprisingly juicy finish. The wet conditions of 2011 instill notes of menthol and mint throughout, balanced with La Jota’s signature polish and grit. A blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot.

  Drinking Window 2021 - 2031

• 92 Wine & Spirits
  While the fruit is ripe, floral and red, tha tannins have the blackness of creosote, lending the wine power and density without feeling aggressive. Decant it to take on the char of grilled lamb chops.
• 91 James Suckling
  Lots of dark-fruit and tar character on the nose and palate. Full body with silky tannins and a dark-chocolate, berry and mineral undertone. A little more subdued than the 2010 but outstanding. Needs two or three years to soften: Try in 2016.
• 90 Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
  The 2011 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain is a blend of 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Merlot and the rest Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot aged in 90% new French oak. Winemaker Christopher Carpenter, who is resurrecting this estate to its glory days of the early nineties, has hit pay dirt with this 2011. More charming than one normally expects of a Howell Mountain Cabernet, it possesses sweet tannin, low acidity, and lots of blueberry and black currant fruit intermixed with licorice, underbrush and foresty notes. Medium-bodied and approachable, this endearing 2011 is best drunk over the next decade.