Lot Overview
- Region: 100% Napa Valley — 50% Stagecoach Vineyard (Atlas Peak/Pritchard Hill), 50% Krupp Brothers Estate (Atlas Bench) + splash Amador County
- Vintage: 2023
- Varietal: 45% Merlot, 30% Malbec, 20% Petit Verdot, 4% Syrah, 1% Tempranillo
- Oak Aging: ~70% new French oak
- Alcohol: 15.0%
- Cases Available: 200
- Cam Price: ~$16.50/bottle ($199/case)
- Retail Estimate: $90+/bottle
- Claude’s Source Guess: Krupp Brothers — Water Witch proprietary red blend (Stagecoach + estate)
- Wine Berserkers Guess: Krupp Brothers Water Witch
- Drink Window: 2026–2040 (peak 2028–2036)
Cameron’s Release Notes
Sourced from the same winery as Lot 10, Lot 13 features a blend of mostly Bordeaux varietals with a splash of Syrah and Tempranillo. Half of the fruit comes from the “vineyard that must not be named” straddling Atlas Peak to Pritchard Hill, with the other half coming from another estate property down on the Atlas Bench.
Tasting Notes
Opaque in the glass with a dark, meaty bouquet — immediately expressive with black cherry and crème de mûre framed with smoky brown sugar barrel notes, cocoa nibs, anise, and leather. Huckleberry jam comes with air. Plush on entry with hedonistic purple and black fruit wrapped around a beautifully integrated, open-knit structure. Voluptuous and muscular on the palate, with gobs of ripe fruit framed by savory coffee and vanilla bean over velvety, mineral-laced tannins in a long, resounding finish. Barrel-chested, meaty, and well-proportioned — this wine reminds me of Albert, my black lab, AKA Bertapotamus.
⏳ Bottle Shock Status: Bottled June 27th. Allow 6 months minimum.
Claude’s Source Guess: Krupp Brothers — Water Witch proprietary red blend
The blend signature of Lot 13 — Merlot, Malbec, Petit Verdot, Syrah, and Tempranillo — is essentially the Water Witch’s calling card. Krupp Brothers has famously planted 6 of the 11 total acres of Tempranillo in all of Napa Valley on their Stagecoach blocks, and their Water Witch blend incorporates this Tempranillo alongside Malbec, Merlot, PV, Syrah, and Cab Franc/Sauv in varying proportions each vintage. The blend composition shifts year to year but always features this same unusual multi-varietal combination.
The “same winery as Lot 10” confirmation links back to the Taransaud/Seguin Moreau/Francois Freres cooperage cited for both lots — Krupp Brothers’ Water Witch uses exactly this cooper trio. The two vineyard sources Cam describes map precisely to Krupp’s situation post-Gallo sale: their retained Stagecoach blocks (the “vineyard that must not be named” straddling Atlas Peak to Pritchard Hill) and their own estate vineyard at the foot of the Vaca Mountains along the Silverado Trail — the Atlas Bench. The splash of Amador County fruit reflects Krupp’s occasional sourcing from Sierra Foothills growers for certain blending components.
✅ Confidence: Very High — WB independently identified Krupp Brothers Water Witch, the unusual multi-varietal blend profile matches precisely, cooperage confirmed, and the dual vineyard sourcing (Stagecoach + Atlas Bench estate) fits Krupp’s post-Gallo portfolio structure exactly.
Drink Window
Early: 2026 — 15% alc and the dense structure need time to integrate.
Peak: 2028–2036. The Water Witch typically drinks best 5–12 years from vintage.
Hold: 2040. The Malbec and Tempranillo give this unusual longevity for a non-Cab dominant blend.
My Call: ⏳ Drink window: 2026–2040 (peak 2028–2036)