2014 Foothills Reserve Syrah

(13.9% alcohol; like the Syrah in the Hills, this wine was aged in about 20% new oak, mostly barriques ): Dark ruby-red. Alluring scents of black raspberry, roasted meat, truffle and black olive tapenade, complicated by musky herbs, pepper, licorice, spices and cola. A step up from the Syrah In the Hills in silkiness of texture. Concentrated, fine-grained and quite dry, but with lovely fruit ripeness. Also denser and more focused than the In the Hills, with more stuffing to support its tannins. Reynvaan picks this vineyard (Foothills in the Sun) nearly three weeks later than his vines in The Rocks, and the yield here is typically just 1-1/2 tons per acre.

Showing similar to last year, the 2014 Syrah Foothills Reserve is a dead ringer for a traditionally made Côte Rôtie. Black olives, black raspberries, blackberries, bacon fat and licorice all flow to a rich, concentrated, yet juicy Syrah that has fine tannin and serious length. It's a gorgeous wine and will drink well for a decade.

(13.9% alcohol; bottled in August of 2015): Bright, full ruby. Deep, carnal scents of black raspberry, brown spices, truffle and smoked meat. Fat, sweet and rich, conveying a strongly saline quality but also vibrant suggestions of pepper and violet. This very sexy wine is sweeter than the 2013 and will offer more early appeal. Finishes tactile and long, with lovely aromatic perfume.