It’s no secret that I’m a fan of Saint Helena’s Smith-Madrone wines, especially their dry Riesling, and have been reviewing them for a few years now. When I received their latest emailed promotion for a six-bottle pack of their new Chardonnay, Riesling and Rose, I snatched them right up!
(Note on the photo: In all of the years I’ve received wine to review I have never had it packed this way to prevent heat damage. The completely insulated shipping box was not refrigerated – no ice packs – but when I took the wine from the box it was chilled! What kind of magic is that? I live in Las Vegas and avoid shipping wines this time of year! Smith-Madrone is a winner!)
Below are links to my past reviews, followed by my new reviews, and links to technical sheets for those that want to learn more – or to compare their tasting notes to mine.
Two years ago, reviews of the Chardonnay, Riesling and Cabernet Sauvignon, all from 2019:
https://evewine101.com/2024/05/31/reviewing-the-new-releases-from-smith-madrone/
Three years ago, review of the 2018 Riesling:
https://evewine101.com/2023/02/24/reviewing-the-new-smith-madrone-2018-riesling/
Five years ago, review of the 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon:
Five years ago, reviews of the 2017 Riesling, 2017 Chardonnay and 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon:
New Reviews
2021 Chardonnay
100% Chardonnay, 14% alcohol, from their estate vineyards in the Spring Mountain District of Napa Valley.
The color of a golden sunrise with a slight rosy pink around the edges of my wine glass. The nose brought up memories of crisp apple slices, clove infused honey, fuzzy peaches, clean wet pebbles and a tiny bit of lemon zest. All of those thoughts enticed me in for a taste, which for me was initially sweet, tart and with a tiny bit of salinity. Then came a bowl of very fresh fruits from apple to pineapple, a great minerality and mouthfeel, and a long finish.
2021 Riesling
100% Riesling, 13.2% alcohol, from their estate vineyards in the Spring Mountain District of Napa Valley.
Pretty light gold color with a darker gold edge, that isn’t diminished in the least by condensation on the wine glass. The aromas made me think of Italian limoncello, lemon-lime soda, pear, peach, apple, powdery perfume, chalky soil, and clean wet stones. Tasting the wine and I noted bruised apple, tart cherry, sourdough toast, a medium acidity and short to medium finish. I enjoyed the wine later with soft truffle Brie cheese, salami, ham, and crusty French bread. The wine softened the hard edges in the cheese and complemented the deli meat and bread.
2025 Rose
50% Merlot and 50% Cabernet Franc, 14.1% alcohol, from their estate vineyards in the Spring Mountain District of Napa Valley.
What an interesting wine! The color was a beautiful and unique blood orange red, on the nose it was a beautiful blow of fresh cherry and strawberry, orange soda and a slight minerality. The flavor immediately reminded me of the strawberry jam my best friend’s mom made us as an after school treat – so fresh. Then I also got notes of pomegranate, sweet fruit juices, very refreshing, a low acid, medium length finish, and a drying quality that made me reach for another sip. We had this on our back porch as the sun set, no food needed.
https://www.smithmadrone.com/wines/winefactsheets/factsheet_chard2021.pdf
https://www.smithmadrone.com/wines/winefactsheets/factsheet-ries2021r.pdf
https://www.smithmadrone.com/wines/winefactsheets/factsheet_rose2025.pdf
more: https://www.smithmadrone.com/downloadables/pdfs/SmithMad-backgrounder-2026-04.pdf
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/smith_madrone/
Winery details
Location: 4022 Spring Mountain Road, St. Helena, CA. Phone 707/963-2283; Fax 707/963-2291 www.smithmadrone.com, info@smithmadrone.com, www.cooksflatreserve.com Open by appointment only, Tuesday/Thursday/Saturday at 10:00 a.m. Wines available to purchase online.
Eve Bushman has a Level Two Intermediate Certification from the Wine and Spirits Education Trust (WSET), a “certification in the first globally-recognized course” as an American Wine Specialist ® from the North American Sommelier Association (NASA), Level 1 Sake Award from WSET, was the subject of a 60-minute Wine Immersion video (over 16k views), authored “Wine Etiquette for Everyone” and has served as a judge for the Proof Awards since 2022 (submit via https://proofawards.com) Cellarmasters, LA Wine Competition, Long Beach Grand Cru and the Global Wine Awards. You can email Eve@EveWine101.com to ask a question about wine or spirits. Follow on Instagram and Facebook.
