Charles smith winemaker biography of william

It was a time to create financial stability for me, my family, and my extended family at the winery. The bottom line is everyone deserves an infinitely pleasant wine to drink. I look in the mirror for the truth in my wines. You see a picture of me and a picture of a guy in a lab suit, well, who the hell do you want making your wine? For inspiration I look for what is missing and what is desired.

And that is what is first and foremost for every brand in my portfolio. Once again, I look for the need and I make it. The one characteristic for myself that is ground zero in making wines is my integrity and my no compromise approach. I do not cut corners. I believe people should have access to the best wines, period. Wines of Substance, for example… When I think of Cabernet Sauvignon, and what I believe people want from it and what its best expression is, I search for that.

A dark fruit profile, a strong terroir imprint, and fruit that can hang on the vine until its physiologically ripe with depth and character.

Charles smith winemaker biography of william

I will find that place and do this from the earth up. Substance: black fruit, pure, deep, complex, complete. I personally like the idea of a single vinveyrad expression, and therefore when I can it is what I do. To produce some of the best wines you need a singular vision. Precept Brands invested in House Wine in and purchased the brand outright in Charles Smith Wines came next — continuing the House Wine philosophy of giving people what they want in a simple but stylish way, but a step or two up the wine market ladder.

These CSW wines have two things in common. First, they have distinctive graphic design elements provided by the talented Rikke Korff, who has handled all the design work for Charles Smith since the beginning. The labels are instantly recognizable and always make me smile. Nothing like the staid chateau drawings or cute critter images that many wines feature.

The second common feature is that the wines are good and good value. The idea seems to be to look at consumers as they really are and then give them a product that satisfies their needs. This means wines that are ready to drink upon release, that are balanced and taste good with food or without it, and that are affordable and carried to market on a relatively simple message relayed through exciting graphical design.

The genius of Charles Smith was to put all of this together — the wines, the message, the design, the marketing — and to get the project rolling injust before the Great Recession hit the United States. The CSW wines offered recession-shocked buyers an opportunity to trade over to a more casual idea of wine, not just to trade down to something a bit cheaper.

Mix all this with a lot of hard work in the vineyard, cellar and on marketing and it is no wonder the wines were so successful. It is well known that I admire this sort of genius. The modernist project continues. And then there is Vino, which was not part of the Constellation Brands deal, a tasty lineup of Washington-grown Italian-varietal wines that are instantly recognizable as a Charles Smith product by their label design and offer an unexpectedly sincere homage to the Italian origins of their grapes.

But they are. Inwhile on a road trip to Walla Walla, WA, Charles met a winemaker who convinced him to start making his own wine, true to his own story and vision. And inCharles released cases of his first vintage. His reds undergo extended maceration on the skins, with no racking after malolactic fermentation is finished. This allows for longer time on the lees, building mouthfeel.

For whites, he foregoes battonage, and they are fined and filtered for stability. Member-Only Content Premium Subscription. Start Free day Trial Already a member? Try Winespectator. Full access to our database of more thanwine ratings Early access to reviews on our editors' favorite just-rated wines Wine and food pairing tool, chefs' pairing recommendations Best value wines and winery intel Subscribe today.

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