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The 2003 Smith-Madrone Riesling is very pale yellow,
with intense aromas of Riesling fruit, finishing
with a fullness on the palate that seems to be a
mixture of both softness and acidity. We refer to
our Riesling as “dry” even though there
is about 0.7 per cent residual sugar in the wine.
Mother Nature was very kind to us by giving us a
vintage that we were able to make wonderful wine
from. But what she gave to us with one hand, she
took away with the other. The 2003 Riesling is one
of the smallest crops in 32 years of harvesting this
grape variety – only 576 cases of wine was
produced.
Beginning with our 1983 Riesling vintage we boldly
went where no other American winery would go for
the next 17 years – we changed our label from
Johannisberg Riesling to the true and correct name – Riesling.
White Riesling is wrong and redundant - when was
the last time you had a red Riesling? This is just
one example of our commitment to this wonderful and
no longer overlooked varietal.
Balance is one of the hallmarks of great winemaking.
With our Rieslings we strive for a balance not only
between sugar and acid, but for a balance between
two great continents - Europe as represented by Germany’s
Rheingau and France’s Alsace and America as
represented by us. We love the minerally middle of
Alsatian Rieslings but not their sharp finish; the
Rheingau offers the beautiful soft floral finish,
but with too much sugar. We try to make our Riesling
in a decidedly American style: a minerally middle
palate with a soft floral finish with just a hint
of sweetness.
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AGE OF VINES:
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32 years |
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APPELLATION:
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Napa Valley |
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SUB-APPELLATION:
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Spring Mountain District |
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FARMING:
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dry-farmed mountain
vineyards |
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VARIETAL CONTENT:
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100% Riesling |
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ALCOHOL:
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12.5% |
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RESIDUAL SUGAR:
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dry, 0.7% |
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CASES:
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576 cases |
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WINEMAKERS & WINEGROWERS:
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CHARLES SMITH & STUART SMITH |
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