🏷️ Lot Overview
Region: Atlas Peak, Napa Valley
Vintage: 2023
Blend: 100% Chardonnay
ChatGPT Original Source Guess: Antica Napa Valley (very strong); possible alternatives include Stagecoach-adjacent estate programs
Wine Berserkers Guess: Parable Block A18
Alcohol: 14.0%
Oak Aging: ~30–40% new French oak
Cam Price: $10.75 ($129/case)
Retail Estimate: $80–$95
Drink Window: 2025–2032
🍷 Cameron’s Release Notes
Missed out on the legendary Lot 4 Sonoma Coast Chardonnay?
Well, here’s your chance to acquire what I believe is a perfectly suitable alternative—one that’s every bit as good, if not better.
Chardonnay lovers, it is indeed time to Back Up The Truck!
Sourced from a well over $80/bottle single-vineyard designate production, Lot 56 is an absolutely stunning 2023 Atlas Peak Chardonnay.
This precision-made, no-expense-spared Burgundian beauty combines an ethereal, high-altitude structure with ripe fruit, incredible mouthfeel, exceptional purity, and decidedly elegant oak integration. Mouthwateringly delicious yet complex and nuanced, I expect it will have broad appeal. My understanding is we bought the entire 2023 bottling blend!
And trust me—it’s an absolute steal at $129 per case delivered.
Tasting Notes
Papaya and mango conspire with baked apple, fresh brioche, and lemon zest in what can only be described as an absolutely gorgeous bouquet. As it blooms in the glass, notes of jasmine, honeysuckle, and crème brûlée further complex the ripe-yet-crystalline aromatics, all dripping with liquid minerality.
Supple on entry with a deliciously creamy texture, this Chardonnay rides a potent-yet-elegant spine of mouthwatering acidity beautifully balanced with ripe pear, creamsicle, lemon zest, and crème caramel. The finish is long, persistent, and beautifully integrated.
Finely crafted, showcasing rich elegance with tremendous finesse, this is unquestionably world-class Chardonnay.
100% Atlas Peak Chardonnay
100% single-vineyard
14.0% alc.
~30–40% new French oak
~165 cases produced
🧠ChatGPT says:
🔍 Source Guess: Antica Napa Valley (Atlas Peak)
Rationale
Atlas Peak, single-vineyard Chardonnay at an $80+ retail price point immediately narrows the field to a very small group of producers. Antica stands out as the most consistent match across site, scale, style, and economics.
Antica farms high-elevation Atlas Peak vineyards known for producing Chardonnay with exactly this profile: creamy yet nervy, mineral-driven, Burgundian-leaning, and built with restrained but confident oak.
Production volume also aligns unusually well. ~165 cases is right in the range of a dedicated single-vineyard or block-selection bottling from a large estate that may choose not to bottle it separately in a given vintage.
The language Cam uses—“entire bottling blend,” “precision-made,” “no-expense-spared,” and the emphasis on elegance over sheer power—tracks closely with Antica’s winemaking philosophy and house style.
Other Atlas Peak estates tend to either skew much richer and oak-heavier, or they produce Chardonnay at significantly smaller, cult-scale volumes that rarely appear in bulk channels.
⏳ Drink Window
Best Enjoyed: 2025–2030
Sweet Spot: 2026–2029 as texture and minerality fully integrate
Hold Potential: Can stretch to ~2032 with proper storage, gaining nutty, brioche-driven complexity while retaining lift