Tasting Notes by Charles Smith: Hold on tight and open your mouth for an explosive, compelling burst of beauty! Grapefruit, fresh cut grass, lemon grass and flint take you on a journey of discovery, bursting with fresh pine needles, wildflowers and lime leaves.
Stimulating, concentrated and long-lasting.
Sunset Vineyards (30%) Located in the Ancient Lakes AVA near the town of Quincy, Sunset Vineyards sits in one of the region's many coulees (valleys formed by the damming of Missoula's floodwaters).
The thin limestone soils, located above 1220 feet in elevation, give the vineyard the classic terroir of the Ancient Lakes AVA and help define the style of white grapes grown in the region.
Frenchman Hills Vineyard (22%) Located about 30 minutes north of Wahluke Slope, one of the warmest areas in the Columbia Valley, Frenchman Hills is cooler due to its elevation of 503 meters.
It is also resistant to frost damage, and the limestone and fractured basalt soils at the top of the vineyard are unaffected by the Missoula Flood that hit eastern Washington 12,000 years ago.
Because the vineyard is located in a slightly cooler area, the grapes have a long hanging time, which prevents the sugar content from increasing excessively, which can lead to high alcohol content, and allows the vines to age for a long time with a beautiful acidity.
Art Den Hoed Vineyard (14%) Located at an altitude of 396m, this vineyard features excellent air circulation making it one of the cooler vineyards in the region.
2022 was a special year for grapes in Washington state.
What started as a late spring gave way to a mild, warm summer and then culminated in one of the longest autumns we have ever experienced.
Our vineyards, which produce excellent grapes every year, produced fruit this year that was well suited to making a very special wine.
This wine is firm, bright and has a beautiful aroma.
We look forward to watching this wine evolve and delight us for years to come! Founded in Walla Walla, Washington, winemaker Charles Smith is the only person to have been awarded Winemaker of the Year by both Wine Enthusiast (2014) and Food & Wine (2009).
His wines have received 141 ratings of 95 or above and 588 ratings of 90 or above from major wine publications such as Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator and Wine Enthusiast, and continue to receive further acclaim.
The brand was started with a singular vision: to create the best value Cabernet Sauvignon in America.
“How is it made?” Traditional winemaking.
Natural fermentation.
Barrel aged.
And bottled without filtration or fining.
In other words, it is the same technique used for making wine in very small quantities, by hand, but on a larger scale.
The wine is clearly conveyed in black.
"This is Cabernet Sauvignon.
"The CS label identifies the wine as made by Charles Smith.
They also produce limited edition single vineyard, single expression and Bordeaux varietal wines.
and a Loire-style single-vineyard Sauvignon Blanc.
This is the latest chapter in the story of Charles Smith and his wines.