Lithology is the study of rock composition, and Alejandro Bulgheroni — the Argentine energy magnate who trained as a geologist before assembling wine estates across four continents — named his Napa project accordingly. In 2014 he bought a 13-acre parcel at the foot of Howell Mountain from the Harlan family. The site was carved out of the 1841 Rancho Carne Humana land grant and sold in 1860 to blacksmith John Howell, for whom the mountain is named; vines went in under Jim and Nina Talcott in 1975, and the stone winery they built later served as the Founders Room for Bill Harlan's portfolio, housing the founding of Promontory and the first vintages of The Napa Valley Reserve. Michel Rolland and Philippe Melka set the winemaking foundation from the first 2014 vintage, with Matt Sands resident winemaker since 2015. Alongside the certified-organic estate block, single-vineyard Cabernets come from Beckstoffer To Kalon, Dr. Crane, Las Piedras and Steltzner.