Made from 71% Cabernet Sauvignon, 24% Merlot, 4% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot, the 2018 Water Witch Red Blend comes from the Quintessence vineyard. The nose offers dark red-fruited aromas wrapped with the dusty, ferric expression of Red Mountain. Delicate resinous purple flowers waft from the glass with elements of oak spices. Medium to full-bodied, the palate delivers a precise and focused fruit expression with succulent acidity and fine-grained tannins. This delightful wine should have no problem aging until its 15th birthday. The wine rested for 21 months in French barrels. 7,200 bottles produced.

The 2017 Water Witch Red Blend is a blend of 66% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot. It shows smoky and toasty aromas of fire-roasted peppers, smoked cherries, dust-covered blackberries and sweet tobacco. Medium to full-bodied, the palate is still tight, with a firm core of dark fruit and offering flavors of roasted espresso bean and charred oak. The wine lingers on the palate with elements of bitter dark chocolate. I recommend aging this in the cellar for another two years before opening and be sure to enjoy with food.

The 2016 Water Witch Red Blend is composed of 64% Cabernet Sauvignon, 26% Merlot, 9% Cabernet Franc and 1% Petit Verdot. The wine has a nose of dark, dusty fruit with spicy tones and rich florals. The palate is fresh, balanced and generous, with a focus on complexity and delivering pleasure to the drinker. This has the rusticity of a complex, mineral-driven Cabernet, with a tight, long finish. Just 240 cases were made.

An oaky blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, the 2015 Water Witch Red Blend offers up aromas and flavors of blackberries and creamy new oak, followed by a medium-bodied, open-knit and somewhat heady palate. It's clean and correct but somewhat forgettable.

Loads of plum, baking spice, licorice and graphite emerge from the glass of the 2014 Water Witch Red Blend, and it's a Cabernet Sauvignon dominated red that includes 25% Merlot, 14% Cabernet Franc and 4% Petit Verdot. Rich, rounded and textured on the palate, it has chewy tannin, loads of character and is ideal for drinking over the coming 8-10 years or more.