2018 Charles Smith K Vintners Syrah Klein Vineyard Walla Walla Valley 750 ml

Charles Smith’s Klein Vineyard Syrah is one of the must-have red wines of the West Coast. One of the defining bottlings of K Vintners—perhaps the most famous producers of top-tier Walla Walla Syrah—it always pulls together intense fruit, delicate floral tones, and muscular structure.

And the 2018 is one of the best versions ever.

This bottle boasts a 97-point score from former–Wine Advocate Rhône expert Jeb Dunnuck, who called it a “crazy complex, nuanced Syrah” that’s “concentrated, yet seamless and weightless on the palate.” It’s absolutely packed with the power and knife-edge balance between freshness and weight that’s a hallmark of the outstanding 2018 vintage.

Located near the southwestern corner of the Walla Walla Valley, Klein combines a number of factors that are ideal for producing powerful, intense Syrah. The finely textured windblown soils are shallow, with volcanic basalt underneath. Those soils allow for easy drainage, keeping berries small and vines stressed for low yields.

Plus, the vineyard sits up at 850 feet, high for the area, and that exposes it to the winds that churn down the Columbia River, thickening the grapes’ skins and helping preserve the vibrancy and brightness that allow for long hangtimes. 

In the winery, Smith and his winemaker Brennon Leighton have “mastered combining power with energy and freshness,” according to Wine Advocate. That means 100% whole clusters during fermentation, using native yeasts, and a long maceration on the skins for optimal extraction. To allow the wine to fully harmonize, it’s given a luxurious 28-month stay in 50% new French oak puncheons—a larger barrel size that allows for gentle oxidation and a more moderate impact of the oak flavors.