K Vintners Art Den Hoed Viognier 2023

Tasting Notes By Winemaker Charles Smith

Once introduced, once taken, brilliant exotic and appealing ripe peach and fresh picked apricot on a warm sunny day. Honeysuckle and a touch of tangerine envelope the senses, crushed slate, wisteria, and a gifted white rose entangle, enchant, and linger. This Viognier is so beautiful and so noble.

Art Den Hoed Vineyard (100%)

Made entirely from Art Den Hoed’s vineyard in lower Yakima Valley, this site is unique because it sits at 1300 ft. in elevation, making it one of the cooler vineyards in the area with excellent air drainage.

2023 was the quintessential ugly duckling turned into a beautiful swan kind of vintage—a very long, wet, and cold winter with a fairly significant freeze and little to no spring. Bud break started late April, and to be honest, we were pretty nervous about how this would affect the vintage, but Mother Nature was on our side and gave us one of the most incredible May and June we have ever seen, with temperatures perfect for growing grapes. It continued into July and August with temperate temperatures and kept right on going with a long and perfect harvest for ripening fruit. It was a fantastic year for whites, balanced with great acidity and complexity, but the reds are incredible, as well as dark, bold and incredible tannins—very much a vintage to keep track of in the future.

2.8 tons per acre, native yest, whole cluster pressed in stainless steel tank | 4 months barrel-aged on lees in 100% neutral French oak demi-muids.

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.