Winemaker Notes
Critical Acclaim
All VintagesWashington makes a bevy of terrific Viognier, and one of the best is the 2019 Viognier Art Den Hoed Vineyard from Smith. Revealing a light gold hue as well as a classic nose of white peach, orange blossom, white flowers, and a touch of honeyed almonds, it hits the palate with medium-bodied richness, nicely integrated acidity, and plenty of classic Viognier richness and complexity. Enjoy bottles over the coming 2-3 years.
Sliced-pineapple, vanilla and light honey character. It’s full-bodied with a firm line of acidity running through the center palate. Tight and focused. Round texture with nice phenolic tension. Drink now.
Vibrant and lively, the 2019 Viognier Art Den Hoed Vineyard offers an aromatically pleasing kaleidoscope of floral and fruit expressions on the nose. Juicy and ripe notions of yellow apple, white peach, cereal grain, jasmine and honeysuckle float out of the glass with pear blossom and sweet citrus elements. Medium to full-bodied, the wine offers a broad and complex mouthfeel with fresh, clean fruit tones before offering a kiss of phenolic bitterness across the mid-palate. The Viognier concludes with a youthful and generous finish. Just under 21,000 bottles were filled after the wine rested for four months on the lees in neutral barriques. For the price, this bottling clearly is punching above its weight class.
Located at the base of the Blue Mountains in Walla Walla Washington, K Vintners opened its doors to the public on December 3rd, 2001. The property at 820 Mill Creek Road where the winery sits was homesteaded in 1853 with the adjacent farmhouse built in 1872. The winery grounds with Titus Creek flowing through the lawn and the old pioneer planted trees, is a little slice of heartland Americana. The Winemaker: He loves to drink wine! Charles Smith, proprietor and winemaker, comes to Walla Walla after 11 years in Scandanavia. Originally from northern California, he has been involved with wine personally and professionally his whole life. And did we forget to mention... he loves to drink wine! The Vineyards: K Vintners is producing wines from 2 distinctive viticultural zones: Wahluke Slope and Walla Walla Valley. Each of these areas are unique and awesome for Syrah and the Field Blends produced. In April '02 two seperate blocks of vineyards were planted to Syrah adjacent to the winery in the rocky dry creek beds that run through K Vintners property.
As the first recognized wine-growing region in the Pacific Northwest, Yakima Valley is centrally located within Washington’s vast Columbia Valley. The region also includes Washington’s oldest Cabernet Sauvignon vines, Otis Vineyard, planted in 1957, and Harrison Hill Vineyard, planted in 1963. Yakima Valley contains three smaller sub-regions: Rattlesnake Hills, Red Mountain, and Snipes Mountain and is ideal for both red and white wine production. In fact, Yakima Valley is Washington’s most diverse region, boasting more than 40 different grape varieties over about one hundred miles.
The cooler parts of the valley are home to almost half of the Chardonnay and Riesling produced in the state! Both are made in a wide range of styles depending on the conditions of the vineyard site.
But its warmer locations yield a large proportion of Washington’s best Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. The finest Yakima Valley reds are jam-packed full of red cherry, currant, raspberry or blackberry fruit, as well as cocoa, herb, spice and savory notes, and exhibit a supple texture, great body, focus and length.
Full-figured and charmingly floral, Viognier is one of the most important white grapes of the northern Rhône where it is used both to produce single varietal wines and as an important blending grape. Look for great New World examples from California, Oregon, Washington and cooler parts of Australia. Somm Secret—Viognier plays a surprisingly important role in the red wines of Côte Rôtie in the northern Rhône. About 5% Viognier is typically co-fermented with the Syrah in order to stabilize the color, and as an added benefit, add a subtle perfume.