Edition 45 | February 2024

Hello Mountain Wine Club,

For your February 2024 Mountain Wine Club shipment, we're sending wine from two top-tier Napa appellations: 2019 Mt. Brave Zinfandel hailing from Mt. Veeder, and the 2015 La Jota Merlot from Howell Mountain.

Be sure to open a bottle on a cold day and let your thoughts wander to the now-sleeping vines that produced the wine in your glass. Like bears hibernating during the winter, grapevines go dormant, dramatically slowing down but tending to subtle needs. As the temperature begins to drop and the leaves change from green to red and yellow, the vines undergo their transformation into dormancy. It is a crucial time for the vines to use their stored energy for root expansion to soak up the necessary nutrients in the soil for bud break and bloom in the spring.

In 2019, Napa experienced a very wet winter, frequent foggy spring mornings, and a mild summer with just a handful of brief heat spikes. Temperate fall weather allowed for extended hang time, and our last fruit came off the vines in late October. With only a few short heat spikes, summer ushered in a near-perfect fall.

In 2015, Napa had a very dry winter and spring, followed by record-breaking heat and dry conditions throughout the summer. Conditions like these are challenging for shoot growth, however, the silver lining is a low risk of vine disease. The warm growing season resulted in a condensed harvest with low yields, resulting in fruit showing a great concentration of flavor with marked acidity and freshness.

The uniqueness of Mt. Brave and La Jota, the specialness of their AVAs, and the caliber of our estate vineyards are on full display in this shipment. We’re so excited to share them with you.

Peace,
Winemaker Chris Carpenter