Sam Smith is making some of the best wine in an area littered with exceptional producers. As the winemaker at Morgan Winery, the groundbreaking Central Coast producer, Sam was given the opportunity to find where... Read More

Sam Smith is making some of the best wine in an area littered with exceptional producers. As the winemaker at Morgan Winery, the groundbreaking Central Coast producer, Sam was given the opportunity to find where his palate and California’s cool, mountainous Central Coast terroir converge. That is exactly what he is doing at his namesake label Samuel Louis Smith.

Sam cut his teeth and developed his palette while making Pinot Noir in the Willamette Valley, cool-climate Syrah in the Northern Rhône, and as assistant winemaker for Margerum Wine. He knew that in order to make the type of wine he wanted he would have to seek out the coldest spot in the Central Coast coolest (temperature, not jazz) regions. Each site is unique in its soil composition but all are blessed with high mineral content low in organic matter, the perfect recipe for low yielding vines that produce fruit of exceptional quality and concentration. All of the sights he works with are organic or in the process of converting.

Sam crafts these gems in a neoclassical style, using light handling and wild fermentations to create wines of place and purity, aroma and structure. While plans for estate vineyards are in the works, “For now, I am sourcing fruit from the most distinctive sustainably farmed vineyards,” says Sam.

All of the wines are made in tiny quantities about 600 cases each which is probably why most folks have not heard of him. This will soon change. That’s because Sam’s wines are in the upper tier when it comes to quality for the region. They offer exceptional value, as they are considerably less expensive than anything at this level. Acquiring these wins was a no brainer for us.

Organic viticulture, mountainous terroir, and minimal intervention in the cellar are the tenets of Samuel Louis Smith Wines. For lovers of elegantly unadorned Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Gamay and Syrah these are some of the most exciting examples from California we have tasted in a very long time.