1997 Lokoya Mount Veeder Cabernet Sauvignon, 3-bottle Lot

Founded in 1995, Lokoya is another relatively new Napa Valley winery dedicated to the idea of making highly-limited production, prestigious Cabernet Sauvignons. Lokoya owns several vineyards in Napa Valley and also purchases grapes to make single-vineyard or single-appellation wines. The Cabernet Sauvignons produced by Lokoya are generally admired by reviewers and are usually available only by mailing list. The winery’s vineyards are in Howell Mountain, Mount Veeder, Diamond Mountain and Spring Mountain. Most of the acreage is planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, though small amounts of Chardonnay and Merlot also are grown. Annual production is about 2,200 cases.

Mount Veeder AVA was established in 1993, though its origins as a wine producing district date to the 19th century. A German Presbyterian pastor named Peter Veeder was one of the first landowners in the area, and by 1864 one of his neighbors, a German sea captain named Stelham Wing, was producing wine commercially. The area continued to attract German agricultural entrepreneurs, some of whom established the estate that would later become the Christian Brothers Mont La Salle winery. Today the AVA includes about 1,000 acres of vineyards, most of them at relatively high altitudes. The Mayacamas vineyard, for instance, is at 2,400 feet. Cabernet Sauvignon is the most frequently planted grape, followed by Malbec, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

One of the most widely grown grape varieties, it can be found in nearly every wine growing region. A cross between Cabernet Franc and Sauvignon Blanc. It’s a hardy vine that produces a full-bodied wine with high tannins and great aging potential.