1994 Howell Mountain Cabernet Sauvignon

The 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain Select performed exceptionally well in a large tasting of 1994 California Cabernets I conducted. The wine is full-bodied, with an opaque purple color, as well as potentially sweeter, more up-front fruit than the Anniversary Release. It is opulent, aromatic (black fruits, truffles, earth, and spice galore), and fleshy, but it boasts plenty of tannin. Look for it to close down in another year or two, not to re-emerge for 7-8. It will last two decades. La Jota's two Cabernet Sauvignon cuvees are similar in quality. The Howell Mountain Select and Anniversary Release share dense, concentrated, full-bodied personalities with superlative levels of fruit and extract. The Anniversary cuvee usually has a bit more depth, ripeness, and overall potential, but that is not always easily discernable when they are young. Each wine will last - at the minimum - 20 years. Readers can decide whether they prefer the more open-knit opulence of the 1994, the more austere, jagged tannins of the big 1995, or the forceful power of the 1996. Tel. (707) 965-3020; Fax (707) 963-7874

The stunning 1994 Cabernet Sauvignon Howell Mountain reveals an opaque black color, gobs of sweet cassis and licorice scents, remarkable fat and opulence, and a chewy, long finish. Note: Prices are listed only for those wines that are being pre-sold as futures by MacArthur Beverages in Washington, DC, the first American wine shop to offer California wine futures, which they have done for eleven consecutive years. Tel. (707) 965-0324