Reynvaan Foothills Reserve Syrah 2019

One of the great wines that I have tasted from Washington this year, the 2019 Foothills Reserve is entirely sourced from the Reynvaan Foothills In the Sun vineyard, perched near the winery in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains outside of Walla Walla. Right away, the nose is utterly sensational, showing an aromatic range that is nearly unparalleled from anything produced in this state. Bacon fat, steak tartare, cigar ash, wet granite, umami and suggestions of black tea with huckleberry all create an intoxicating bouquet. You are simply compelled to come back to the glass after more air to recreate this sinfully good and highly novel arrangement of aromatics. Fresh and vibrant, with a soft texture and crazy good length, this beautiful, one-of-a-kind, very Côte-Rôtie bottling is surely to satisfy any serious collector of Washington wine over the next decade. Drinking window: 2021-2029. Score – 97. (Dr. Owen Bargreen, vinous.com, March 2022)