Few winemakers have a history similar to Charles Smith - a former tour manager of Rock&’n’Roll groups. He was born and raised an hour away from Napa Valley, but his love for wine was only discovered in Europe. It was during one of his concert tours in 1999 that Charles met a winemaker who convinced him to start making wine consistent with his own history and vision. Charles Smith founded vineyards in the north-western United States in Washington state and in 2001,he created his first wine vintage. In 2008, Wine & Spirits magazine recognized Charles Smith wines as one of " The Best New Wineries of the Last Decade" and they called the vineyard "The Winery of the Year" in its annual shopping guide. In 2009, Food & Wine magazine awarded Charles the title of "Winemaker of the Year. In 2014 Charles was also awarded honourable title of "The Winemaker of the Year" by The Wine Enthusiast.