Tin Lizzie Wineworks

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Make your own
premium quality wines

Fully-equipped
winemaking
facility

Award-winning
 UC Davis-trained
winemaker on staff

Conveniently located
between Baltimore & DC
in Clarksville, MD

Beautiful
agricultural setting

Make Your Own Wine from Stagecoach Vineyard Grapes!

Dave’s Trip to Stagecoach Vineyards

Many of you have heard me talk about the exceptional grapes we get from Stagecoach Vineyards.  Most of the award-winning wines I’ve made used grapes from Stagecoach.  On a recent trip to California I had the pleasure of visiting the operation in Napa.  The owner, Jan Krupp, gave me a guided tour of this immense vineyard.

To reach Stagecoach, you take a small road off the Silverado Trial that winds about six miles up into the hills surrounding Napa Valley.  At about 1300 feet above the valley, just when you think, “There can’t possible be a vineyard up here,” you come to the gates of Stagecoach Vineyards.  It’s also home to Krupp Vineyards and Krupp Brothers Vineyards, all of which are part of Jan’s domain.  In the early 90s, Jan, an internist in the Bay Area, and originally from NJ, decided he wanted to grow grapes.  He bought 40+ acres covered in brush, well off the beaten path, that few imagined could be turned into a vineyard.  That original acreage has expanded over the years and the three vineyards now comprise over 1200 acres, making them one of the largest Napa vineyard developments of the past several decades. 

Jan met me at the gate and loaded me into his dusty 4-wheel drive.  He drove me all over the vineyards, pointing out interesting sights along the way.  The first thing we saw was a pair of Golden Eagles perched atop a post, standing watch over the vines.

The vineyards have been carved out of land that was covered in scrub oak, thick underbrush and really big rocks.  They were clearing some new acreage while I was there and they were using some serious construction equipment.  Jan had to buy heavy-duty mining equipment to deal with the giant boulders of volcanic rock that are everywhere.  Jan rents rock crushing equipment to turn the big rocks into little rocks that they sell to contractors or use to pave the vineyard roads with.  Finding water down around 400 feet was the key to the entire operation.  Using a combination of geologists and water diviners, Jan found an underground river about 400 feet down.  Today, that river supplies all of the vineyards’ water needs.  The operation even has its own electrical generating station to power the well pumps and vineyard facilities.

The vineyards were just waking up when I arrived in mid-April.  Down in the warmer parts of Napa Valley, some of the vines were well along, with canes up to a foot long.  However, up at Stagecoach, the vines were just starting to push out their buds.  Some vines still appeared to be sleeping.  But it was still a spectacular and breath-taking site, looking down over the vines into the Napa Valley below or out to the peaks to the East.

Jan has planted a remarkable variety of grapes and clones in these vineyards.  However, Stagecoach has become known for rich, dark and complex Cabernets.  Close behind and rising fast in popularity are the incredibly dense Syrah.  Over 50 wineries use Stagecoach grapes in their wines.  Search on “Stagecoach” and “Cabernet” and you’ll find a number of wines ranging in price from $50/bottle up to $200/bottle for wines produced by Paul Hobbs.

At the end of my visit, Jan and I traded bottles of wine.  I gave him a bottle of my 2006 Cabernet sauvignon made in Maryland from grapes from his vineyard.  He said it was the first time that he had ever gotten wine back from the grapes that left.  Jan gave me a bottle of 2004 Syrah that I think we’re going to hold on to for a while.

Want to make your own award-winning wines from Stagecoach Vineyard grapes?

 Last year, we weren’t able to offer Stagecoach Vineyard grapes due the combination of several events, including a late April frost that drastically reduced the crop yield.  This year, the vines appear to be making up for last year’s low yield by sending out multiple buds and Jan has high hopes for a great crop. 

 We’re excited to be able to offer Stagecoach grapes this fall.  We’ve ordered both Cabernet sauvignon and Syrah grapes.  Stagecoach Vineyard grapes are being specially imported by our sister school California WineWorks in Ramsey, NJ, so we’re one of only two winemaking facilities on the East coast that are offering these remarkable grapes.  No other winemaking grapes available in the East can compare with the quality of these grapes and the wines they produce.  We’re taking orders now for the fall so give us a call at 301-318-9954 or e-mail me.