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July 2016 WINES&VINES 29 TECHNICAL SPOTLIGHT WINEMAKING Caroline Hoogenboom Napa - Sonoma - East Coast Cell. (707) 364-6334 caroline@ermitageusa.com Amy Lee Oregon - Washington - California Central Coast Cell. (509) 995-2771 amy@ermitageusa.com Offce: 1285 S. Foothill Blvd Cloverdale, CA 95425 Ph: (707) 224-2377 Fax: (707) 224-2390 all wash water flows to a long drain that runs beneath the wall separating the barrel rooms from the rest of the winery. The design replaces any drains in the floor of the barrel room that create an uneven surface, which can be dangerous when forklift opera- tors are moving stacks of barrels. "I'm pretty excited about that idea," he said. "I thought it was quite genius on our part." Finished wine is pumped di- rectly from barrels to one of the stainless steel tanks, and from there it is bottled by Signature Mobile Bottlers, which is based in Clackamas, Ore. The wines for Charles Smith and other brands are packaged in glass from TricorBraun under Stelvin screwcaps or Cork Supply corks with Ramondin capsules. Some of Smith's success can be attributed to his distinctive black and white labels that use striking images and fonts to stand out on retail shelves. All of the labels have been designed by Rikke Korff, who is from Denmark and is the former design director for Levi Strauss & Co. Korff and Smith have been friends for nearly two decades. Label print- ing is by Richmark Label Co. The winery at Jet City is pro- ducing around 32,000 cases, w h i c h i n c l u d e s K Vi n t n e r s , Charles Smith Royal City, Sixto and some of the wines for the Wines of Substance program. Leighton also produces wine for h i s o w n b r a n d , B . L e i g h t o n Wines, at Jet City. The rest of Smith's wine is produced at custom-crush winer- ies in the Washington state cities of Mattawa, Benton City and Quincy. Leighton said the com- pany accounts for nearly all the tank space at each facility, so he has a great deal of control over the winemaking, but it still means he does a tremendous amount of driving around Washington state. In addition to the latest in winemaking equipment, the win- ery also has a few features in- dicative of Smith's style. An elaborate sound and lighting system can illuminate the cellar with a variety of different color lights and blare music at near- rock concert decibel levels. While equipped for serious winemaking, the winery is just as well equipped for some seri- ous partying, and that seems rather apt for a facility bearing Smith's name. White grapes are pressed in the Bucher membrane press while the basket press is used for reds. CHARLES SMITH WINES