United States · California

La Jota Vineyard

La Jota Vineyard Co. is a Howell Mountain estate in the eastern hills of Napa Valley, originally established in the 1890s and re-established in the modern era by Bill Smith in 1974. Howell Mountain is one of Napa's most distinctive AVAs: above the fog line at 1,400–2,200 feet elevation, with volcanic ash soils (tufa) that produce wines of extreme tannic density, high acidity, and remarkable longevity. La Jota built its initial reputation on Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc in the 1980s and 1990s, with the Cabernet Franc in particular becoming a benchmark for the variety in California — a wine that demonstrated Howell Mountain's unusual ability to ripen Cabernet Franc fully without losing its varietal character. The estate was purchased by Jackson Family Wines in 2005, which has maintained the focus on mountain-sourced varietals. Auction data shows 249 lots averaging $102 per bottle, ranging from $21 to $824. The Heritage Release Cabernet Sauvignon and standard Cabernet Sauvignon drive most volume, while the Cabernet Franc and Petite Sirah represent rarer, specialty bottlings that command collector premiums. The $824 ceiling reflects older Smith-era bottles or large formats of the Heritage Release from exceptional Howell Mountain vintages. Under Jackson Family Wines, La Jota's mountain sourcing philosophy has remained intact, and recent releases continue to demonstrate that Howell Mountain produces some of Napa's most distinctive and genuinely age-worthy Cabernet Sauvignon expressions.