The Wine
While still in the barrel, Charles would have people taste this wine....consistently the comments were “this is beautiful”. The name stuck and it continues to be a beautiful, complex and timeless wine. This wine is the only wine that Charles produces that includes a little bit of Viognier co-fermented with Syrah making it more sexy, alluring and stunningly beautiful.
The Vintage
The 2018 vintage was incredible! This outstanding vintage began mild followed by a long and dry ripening season in the fall. This enabled us to hang the fruit to reach optimal ripeness without losing acidity or increasing sugars. The wines from 2018 are exceptional in many ways, from the great expression of the whites to the beautiful refinement and complexity of the reds.
The Vineyard
Powerline Estate Vineyard (100%). Charles planted the 38-acre estate vineyard in the heart of the Walla Walla Valley, located over 1200 feet elevation. The soils are well-drained with cobblestone river rocks and underlying layers of sand and gravel deposits, allowing vines to develop very deep and strong roots. The deep sand and silt below the stones bring a great purity to the grapes, while high elevations keep acids high, producing very well-balanced wines with remarkable complex characters.
Winemaking
1.6 tons per acre Native yeast 100% whole cluster fermentation 47 days on skins 54% new French oak punche-ons 28 months barrel-aged on lees 5.3 g/L titratable acidity 3.98 pH 14.5% alcohol No residual sugar
Tasting notes
A multi-layered beauty; perfumed, lovely. Super dark rose. Broken, unfiltered cigarette, Amaro. Densely colored with a shimmering red rim. Giving, yet just an inch at a time. One to ponder. One to enjoy. –Winemaker Charles Smith
The Estate
K is the beginning. K is my Rhone-centric winery that was started by making single-vineyard Syrahs back in 1999. K was the opportunity. K was the moment. K is ground zero. 'X' marks the spot for my wine world and my emotional world in wine, which begins in Walla Walla, Washington.-Winemaker, Charles Smith. Winemaker Charles Smith opened the doors to his first winery, K Vintners, in December 2001. His first vintage was 330 cases of 1999 K Syrah, which he sold out of the back of his 1987 Chevy Astro van. The ’99 K Syrah immediately revealed that he could not only make extraordinary wine but he could make wine that people would remember. On the label was stamped a simple, giant, black on white letter “K,” big enough for anyone to spot across the room. It’s the same iconic and unforgettable black “K” that is used on our wine bottles today.K Vintners is about small lots of single-vineyard Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Grenache, Tempranillo, Sangiovese and field blends of those grapes, all of which are hand-picked, fermented with naturally occurring yeasts and basket pressed.