K Vintners Syrah Milbrandt 2020

Tasting Notes by Winemaker Charles Smith

Darkly flavored and super juicy. Oozing with black raspberry, black plum, blackberry, dates. Orange marmalade, cracked black pepper, cardamom, Columbia River gravel. Silky, sexy, Milbrandt.

Northridge Vineyard (67%)

Loamy, fine sand over silica limestone, these ancient soils above the Missoula Flood plain are some of the best to grow fruit. This site is higher elevation and has cooler evenings,

which creates later ripening, lots of minerality and concentration. A hidden gem!
 

Clifton Hills Vineyard (33%)

Owned and farmed by the Milbrandt family, this vineyard is a vigor-limiting mix of stone strewn sand transitioning over the first two feet of soil to deep glacially deposited gravel. These soils are extremely well drained allowing total control of the canopy.

The 2020 vintage might be the best vintage that we have ever had in Washington state history. We had an incredible growing season that was long and temperate, allowing the fruit to ripen evenly. The wines are focused, rich, complex and lively. The reds are restrained and elegant, yet powerful with incredible tension and balance. Our white and rosé wines are wonderfully rich on the palate but balanced with enough acid to make the wines complete. We are excited to see how these wines evolve!

3.1 tons per acre, native yeast, 100% whole cluster fermentation, 42 days on skins | 17 months barrel-aged on lees in 30% new French oak puncheons.

Charles Smith’s explosion onto the world wine scene has been nothing less than phenomenal. Winemaker Charles Smith managed Rock & Roll bands in Europe for 11 years before moving to Walla Walla and starting K Vintners on a shoestring. While Charles’ wines radiate the excitement of his Rock & Roll roots, they are grounded in serious quality and value. Charles bottles his brands under several labels. Charles Smith Wines are made for the way that most wines are being consumed today - the day that they are purchased - and are equal parts accessible, affordable and top quality. Charles also produces some of the most interesting and highly rated Syrah in America under his original K Vintners label. K Vintners’ wines are made in very small quantities and are crafted to appeal to the most discriminating connoisseurs. In the past 10 years Charles Smith Wines and K Vintners have garnered 66 scores of 95 points and above and over 300 scores of 90 points and above from the leading U.S. wine publications : Wine Advocate, Wine Spectator, and Wine Enthusiast.