SMITH-MADRONE (Spring Mountain District, Napa Valley) -- Current Release Wines
A Continuation of Napa's great 1970s
I don’t have the time or the ability to cover the huge range of California wines. But I was intrigued when offered a set of samples from Smith-Madrone. The estate has been around since 1971, producing its first wine, a Riesling, in 1977.
The estate is led by Charles and Stuart Smith, who are still running the show more than half a century later. The Smith brothers seem always to have been happy to go their own way and not follow the latest fashions. For example, they were bottling unfined and unfiltered at a time when that was considered commercial suicide because consumers didn’t want to deal with deposits when they opened a bottle. The estate is entirely dry-farmed.
I was delighted to find wines that reminded me greatly of the wonderful Napa Valley wines of the 1970s (with a bit more alcohol due to the effects of global warming). The word that immediately comes to mind is “throwback” — except that term often implies a return to an earlier way of doing something, and as best I know, these wines are not a return, but rather a continuation of the way the wines have always been.
One final observation is the very reasonable prices for these wines, nowhere near your standard Napa Valley prices these days. Production is quite small, so you may most readily obtain these wines from the Smith-Madrone website.
2019 Riesling Napa Valley Spring Mountain District
This is a straightforward dry Riesling with a firm, medium-weight body and plenty of Riesling citrus fruit and minerality in the nose and mouth. The wine is young, fresh, and crisp and should age well for some time. Cork closure. 13.3% stated alcohol. 90/A
2021 Riesling Napa Valley Spring Mountain District
The 2021 Riesling is quite similar to the 2019 above, but with just a touch less concentration. Cork closure. 13.2% stated alcohol. 88/B+
2022 Riesling Napa Valley Spring Mountain District
The similarity in style continues with the 2022, with just a bit more minerality in both nose and mouth than in the previous wines. Cork closure. 13.2% stated alcohol. 90/A
2023 Riesling Napa Valley Spring Mountain District
Perhaps the most promising of the Riesling lot is the 2023, a wine that is crisp, clear, light, mineral, and refreshing. This wine seems slightly riper in its fruit than the others, and includes pleasing apricot notes on the finish, yet the acidity remains an energetic backbone. Cork closure. 13.4% stated alcohol. 91/A
2019 Chardonnay Napa Valley Spring Mountain District
The Chardonnay is a crisp, fresh wine with a firm but somewhat creamy texture to go with butter hints and orange notes. The wine is barrel-fermented with 55% new oak, but oakiness is not an issue, nor is alcohol despite a stated 14.6%. Very good acidity here, too, with a pH of 3.23 and 8.3 g/l total acidity, which helps to tame the alcohol. Cork closure. 91/A
2021 Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley Spring Mountain District
This wine is very much in line with the Napa Cabernets I recall from the 1970s. It is deep, rich, and flavorful, but balanced and not overly powerful or polished. There is quite a bit of new oak (65%), but it is not overwhelming and contributes to the slightly smoky aromas and flavors that go well with the dark berry fruits. Tannins here are not overpowering, and like the oak, the alcohol is not noticeable. This wine drinks well now, but also can age well. 81.9% Cabernet Sauvignon, 17.7% Cabernet Franc, 0.4% Merlot. Cork closure. 14.3% stated alcohol. 92/A
2019 Cook’s Flat Reserve Spring Mountain District
This is the estate’s prestige wine, from its best lots each vintage, and only in vintages of superior quality. The 2019 is 90% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Cabernet Franc, raised 18 months entirely in new French oak. The wine for the moment shows too much high-toast oak for my tastes, although it may well integrate with substantial aging. Behind the oak, there’s no doubt that the wine has plenty of deep cassis fruit to go with the smooth texture. Cork closure. 14.6% stated alcohol. 88(+)/B