86% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 6% Cabernet Franc

Food pairings: Grilled ribeye or New York strip, braised short ribs, roast leg of lamb with rosemary, mushroom dishes and aged hard cheeses.

Scores:

• 95 points, Decanter

Winemaking: Lithology's Napa Valley Cabernet, first made in 2014, is one of the three cornerstone wines of the portfolio. It is assembled each vintage through a complex blending program from about 60 barrels and many lots, balancing the tension of mountain fruit with the plush texture of valley-floor sites. The 2019 was harvested from October 3 to 22, fermented for 19 to 28 days mostly in stainless steel, with concrete, oak and puncheons, and aged 22 months in French oak, 61% new.

Vineyards and terroir: The wine draws on Lithology's acclaimed single-vineyard sources and other esteemed vineyards. In 2019 the fruit came from several Napa Valley sites, including Oakville, St. Helena and Rutherford. The season began with copious rainfall and late soil moisture, then settled into a long, warm summer with few heat spikes and foggy mornings; a mild finish and long hang time preserved freshness and structure.

Family and history: Lithology was founded by Argentine rancher and energy engineer Alejandro P. Bulgheroni, who in 2014 acquired a 13-acre property at the foot of Howell Mountain in St. Helena from the Harlan family, naming the project for the study of rocks in a nod to his background in geology. The site was part of the 1841 Carne Humana Rancho grant; vines were first planted there in 1975 by Jim and Nina Talcott, who built the stone winery that later became the first home of H. William Harlan's Promontory and The Napa Valley Reserve. Michel Rolland and Philippe Melka established Lithology's winemaking from the first vintage, and New Zealand-born Matt Sands has been resident winemaker since 2015.

In the pictures: The Lithology winemaking team in the barrel cellar of the stone winery in St. Helena, and a Lithology vineyard at sunset (both courtesy of Lithology).