K “The Deal” Syrah Sundance Vineyard

Soft and generous, with green olives, lush currants, plums, and spices, great presence and depth with refined tannins and a long, expressive finish. As the manager of a rock band, Charles Smith toured Europe in the 1990s and discovered his fascination with wine. Back in Seattle, Washington State, in the far northwest of the USA, he took over a small wine shop and made his first contacts with wine producers in the burgeoning wine region between the Columbia Valley and the Blue Mountains. In Walla Walla, he met the Frenchman Christophe Baron, who inspired him to produce his first wine. Baron sold him grapes – and with the Syrah from his Cailloux Vineyard, the first K-Vintners wine was born in 1999. Smith's great talent was finding grapes from the best vineyards of various producers and creating something truly distinctive. The K-Vintners series was born. Charles Smith's message is simple and compelling: "I make powerful, well-balanced wines, not overripe, but always with that certain something." Starting out in 2001 with 330 cases, the K-Vintners winery's production has now grown to 15,000 cases. Wine Spectator awarded the seductive 2010 K-Vintners Syrah Walla Walla Valley Old Stones 94 out of 100 points. In 2014, Wine Enthusiast named Charles Smith Winemaker of the Year at the Wine Star Awards.