This wine shows beautiful balance between fruit ripeness, use of oak, and minerality. Aromas of apple blossoms, baked apple, ripe pears, and citrus with hints of toast. On the palate this medium body wine is complex and layered: baked apple (including maple and light clove), lemon confit, and butterscotch flavors are carried on by fresh acidity and lingering minerality.

WINE INFORMATION

Charles Smith, the man behind K Vintners and other lines of wines looks a little like Fran Zappa.  He’s the son of a French father and a Welsh mother, and grew up in California in a family that regularly drank wine.  He moved to Denmark, working as a roadie for a rock band and moving on to arrange concert tours.  He returned to the States in 1999 and opened a wine shop on Bainbridge Island near Seattle.  On a road trip, he met a Frenchman who shared his passion for Syrah, and was persuaded to move to Walla Walla and make wine.  He released his first vintage, the’99 two years later and never looked back.  He is known for the strong black-and-white graphics of his labels, all created by a Danish friend.

Grapes for this wine come from four Washington State vineyards each bringing a different quality to the final wine:  33% from Frenchman Hills; 32% from Roza Hills; 28% from High River; and 7% from Moxee vineyard.

The 2019 vintage was on the cooler side as it started slow with later-than-usual bud break and continued on to be fairly moderate throughout the year. Some vineyards had issues with an October freeze a bit earlier than usual, but the high-elevation vineyards have great air drainage, which allows them to extend the growing season late into October without freeze. This yielded fantastic ripening and some awesome wines with incredible balance and character.

Grapes were whole cluster pressed and fermented with native yeast in barrels. The wine was aged in oak barrels for 11 months on the lees, 25% new French oak barriques.

Cheese, Chicken/Turkey, Cream Sauce Pasta, Mushrooms, Shellfish