The 2008 Roma en Chamberlin, also from a Cayuse vineyard, is composed of 62% Cabernet Sauvignon and 38% Syrah. Dense, rich, plush, and well-balanced, this already complex wine will also evolve for another 3-4 years and drink well through 2025. I met up with Charles at his new wine bar in Walla Walla before we drove out to the winery in his 1949 Cadillac, a picture of which is on the web-site (not the deluxe model like my grandfather used to drive). It is always a highlight of my annual trip to Washington because in addition to the tasting, you get a performance but, after all is said and done, when it comes to making wine, Charles Smith is all business. He knows where the vineyards are, he believes in amazingly low yields, and in the winery he is a non-interventionist. All of the following wines were made with native ferments and were bottled without fining or filtration. Tel. (509) 526-5230; www.kvintners.com

A similar blend to the Ovide; this is 62% Cabernet Sauvignon and 38% Syrah. The fruit is more forward here, with pretty blackberry and black cherry flavors, and a dark and forceful streak of iron and charcoal and licorice. A light lavender note adds interest.——P.G.(12/15/2011)—— 94