Winemaker Notes
Aromatically, the wine opens with Meyer lemons, pomelo, orange flowers, and just a dab of mandarin orange hiding shyly behind a rose bush. This is all backed up with a solid dose of minerality. On the palate the wine is racy and beautifully balanced with a backbone of juicy fruit acidity. Wonderfully stylish and delicious and built to last.
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
Any surprise that ultra-prime land in Napa is still planted to Riesling will blow off like morning fog for anyone who tastes this wine. Truly dry but still generous in aroma and fleshy fruit recalling the best peach you've ever eaten, it belongs among the world's most esteemed examples of this great variety.
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Wine Enthusiast
Brightening aromatics carry into abundant flavors of salted lemon, lime zest and grapefruit pith. A pleasingly textural palate makes this sophisticated Riesling a perfect accompaniment for a range of foods. It is delicious now and will develop beautifully in the bottle. A firm and enticing wine.
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James Suckling
Riesling is quite unusual in Napa Valley, but the Smith brothers make an outstanding version. Preserved lemons, kerosine and orange sherbet on the nose. The palate is focused and minerally, with notes of orange zest and candied kaffir limes carried by a textured, medium body. Very vibrant and fresh.
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Jeb Dunnuck
Medium gold-hued, with a bright, juicy, off-dry style, the 2019 Riesling offers terrific aromatics of honeyed citrus, mint, and lychee nut. Nicely balanced and medium-bodied, with bright acidity and a great finish, it's a rich, concentrated, yet racy, vibrant Riesling.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Marked by scents of honey and Golden Delicious apples, the 2019 Riesling appears to be aging a bit rapidly, but it still retains plenty of current-drinking appeal. Medium-bodied and crisp, it finishes long.
Riesling possesses a remarkable ability to reflect the character of wherever it is grown while still maintaining its identity. A regal variety of incredible purity and precision, this versatile grape can be just as enjoyable dry or sweet, young or old, still or sparkling and can age longer than nearly any other white variety. Somm Secret—Given how difficult it is to discern the level of sweetness in a Riesling from the label, here are some clues to find the dry ones. First, look for the world “trocken.” (“Halbtrocken” or “feinherb” mean off-dry.) Also a higher abv usually indicates a drier Riesling.
Above the town of St. Helena on the eastern slopes of the Mayacamas Mountains sits the Spring Mountain District.
A dynamic region, its vineyards, cut by numerous springs and streams, vary in elevation, slope and aspect. Soils differ throughout with over 20 distinct types inside of the 8,600 acres that define the appellation. Within that area, only about 1,000 are planted to vineyards. Predominantly farmed by small, independent producers, the region currently has just over 30 wineries.
During the growing season, late afternoon Pacific Ocean breezes reach the Spring Mountain vineyards, which sit at between 400 and 1,200 feet. Daytime temperatures during mid summer and early fall remain slightly cooler than those of the valley floor.
Spring Mountain soils—volcanic matter and sedimentary rock—create intense but balanced reds with lush and delicate tannins. The area excels with Bordeaux varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot and in some cooler spots, Chardonnay.