Washington Wine Blog 2018 Winery of the Year: Reynvaan Family Vineyards

Happy Wednesday to you all. Today we bring you our winery of the year. It took a great deal of deliberation as there were several North American wineries at the top of the list for 2018. The likes of Domaine Serene, HALL, Quilceda Creek and Cayuse Vineyards are all standing at the high table. The challenges of choosing a winery of the year were more difficult than any other year because of the incredible quality of overall wine lineups but we have chosen Reynvaan Family Vineyards as our deserved winner.

This summer visiting with Matt Reynvaan we sampled his exciting 2016 red and white wines wines. The white wines were electric and showed incredible tension and viscosity. I was absolutely blown away by these wines as he is truly producing some of the best white wine in North America. The red wines were the best that I have tried from this estate. Both estate vineyards are producing some mind-blowing red wines and Matt’s 2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘Stoneessence’ Syrah (WWB, 97) was my 2018 Washington Wine Blog wine of the year. Speaking with Matt about his honor, he noted “For Reynvaan Family Vineyards we have dedicated ourselves to creating world class Syrah’s exclusively from our Estate vineyards in the Walla Walla Valley. We feel this valley has some of the most exciting, intriguing, terroir in the United States and beyond. It is our passion to produce a wine of individual character that captures the essence of our grapes in each bottle.” Lets raise our glass to the Reynvaan family for their huge successes. Here are my reviews of the new releases by Reynvaan Family Vineyards. Learn more about this incredible winery at https://www.reynvaanfamilyvineyards.com

2016 Reynvaan ‘In The Rocks’ Viognier- The wine saw extensive barrel age and battonage prior to bottling. The resultant Viognier its truly one of the best white wines that I have ever sampled from Washington. The 2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘In The Rocks Viognier’ opens with an incredible stony nose with aromas of chamomile, nectarine jelly, white flowers, honeydew melon and wet stone. The palate exudes class with honeydew melon, roasted pineapple, mango and roasted macadamia nut as this shows an exotic edge. The near minute long finish impresses. Only 80 cases of this thrilling wine, so grab this while you can. Drink 2018-2028- 95

2016 Reynvaan Grenache Blanc- This deeply hued wine begins with aromas of honeysuckle, apricot and cantalopoe. The palate has an incredible texture with Pazzaz apple, kiwi, pink grapefruit and roasted pineapple. This has incredible range and the mouthfeel delights. The tension here is really incredible. Refreshing yet rich, this gorgeous wine will cellar well over the next decade. Drink 2018-2028- 94

2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘In The Hills’ Syrah- The smoky aromatics grip you as well as the lifted qualities from the Viognier. The wine weighs in at 13.8% alcohol and shows smoked brisket, wet rock, and Umami, bacon fat and blood orange rind on the highly perfumed nose. The palate shows an insanely good mouthfeel with wonderful freshness and minerality. The combination of richness and tension is hard to resist right now. The stony character and herbaceousness to the wine really shimmers in the limelight. Black tea, wild blackberry, orange zest and a touch of milk chocolate flavors brings a wonderful array of flavors to the palate. While this will cellar well for a decade, it is drinking marvelously right now Drink 2018-2028- 94

2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘Foothills Reserve’ Syrah- The 2016 ‘Foothills Reserve’ is a phenomenal wine that is truly one of the best that I have sampled from Washington in the past year. The nose takes on incredible range from blood orange, to charcuterie to black fruits and olive tapenade. The seductive nose brings you back to the glass for more. The palate shows remarkable freshness and intensity. Asian spice, Hoisin sauce, black tea, blackberry pie and wet stone characters all come to play on the palate. There is a seamless quality to this wine that glides through the palate. Fresh and energetic, while highly refined, this wine will cellar marvelously over the next decade. I adore the range here. Drink 2018-2029- 96

2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘In The Rocks’ Syrah- The 2016 Reynvaan ‘In The Rocks’ Syrah is a phenomenal wine made by superstar winemaker Matt Reynvaan. With 4% Viognier blended in the nose is highly perfumed with wet stone, Umami, white rose and lychee as well as blood orange and red raspberry cordial. The lifted aromatics from the Viognier are truly outstanding. The palate shows wonderful tension, range and verve with wet stone, Umami, blood orange, red cherry candy and a touch of horse manure. Seductive, with insanely good range, this is a stunning effort by Reynvaan. Drink 2018-2028- 95

2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘The Contender’ Syrah-This wine weights in at 13.2% alcohol has 4% Marsanne blended in. The nose is highly seductive with beautiful white flowers, lychee with black tea, orange zest and milk chocolate. The range here is simply insane. The palate shows really good range as well with a wonderful tension and verve. Mike chocolate, black tea, sagebrush, wet stone and smoked pork shoulder flavors are all remarkably coming together in the glass. The citrus aspect at the finish is simply outstanding. Drink 2018-2028- 95

2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘Stonessence’ Syrah- The 2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘Stonessence’ Syrah is a simply gorgeous effort by this storied estate. The nose is rather intoxicating with horse manure, blood orange, red cherry cola, and black tea with a touch of green olive tapenade. The minerality and freshness of the wine is simply astounding as is the wonderful mouthfeel. Wet stone, wild blackberry, Umami, and satsuma orange flavors all come together in the glass. The mouth-watering acidity makes this stunner nearly impossible to put down right now. A remarkable wine, this will cellar marvelously for a decade or more. Drink 2018-2028- 97

2016 Reynvaan Family Vineyards ‘The Classic’ Red Wine- (Release April 2019) The wine is a blend of 60% Cabernet with the remainder Merlot and Cabernet Franc. The wine initially fermented in new puncheons and then was aged in neutral French oak prior to bottling. This takes on wonderfully smoky character on the nose with wet stone, green bell pepper, mocha and crushed mint. The wine has a wonderful minerality with great freshness and a wonderful mouthfeel. This shows mouth-watering acidity and wonderful dark fruits that mingle with green olive tapenade, cigar box, wild blackberry pie and Asian spice. This may be the best ‘The Classic’ I have tried. Drink 2018-2026- 94