2018 | Rhys Vineyards | Horseshoe Hillside Pinot Noir

A beautifully layered and distinctly floral-inflected nose combines notes of ripe dark currant, poached plum, spice and a suggestion of menthol. The pliant, round and generously proportioned flavors possess a suave mid-palate texture that contrasts with the impressively intense finish that immediately tightens up while delivering excellent persistence on the robust and borderline rustic finish.

Reviews:

• Vinous: The 2018 Pinot Noir Horseshoe Hillsides, from the rim of the upper plateau, is a heady, exotic wine. Black cherry, licorice, menthol, cloves and leather build in a potent, sumptuous wine that marries fruit intensity and structure. Readers should plan on being patient with the 2018, as it won’t be ready to drink anytime soon. This is an especially dense, savory style.

• Jeb Dunnuck: The flagship 2018 Pinot Noir Horseshoe Vineyard Black Label comes from a tiny section of this vineyard and is another beautiful wine from this team that does everything right. Ripe pomegranate, red currants, iodine, crushed stone, new leather, and wood smoke all emerge from the glass, and this beauty hits the palate with medium to full-bodied richness, a flawless texture, silky tannins, and a great, great finish. The purity and elegance of the 2018 vintage is front and center, it has incredible complexity, perfect balance, and is just a singular, gorgeously complete Pinot Noir to enjoy over the coming 15 years or more.

Producer Information

Rhys Vineyards is a well-regarded wine producer based in the Santa Cruz Mountains and sourcing fruit from mountain vineyards both in the Santa Cruz Mountain AVA and the Anderson Valley AVA, some 150 miles (240km) north. The Californian estate, which established its first vineyards in the mid-1990s, focuses on three grape varieties: Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah. Six of the estate's vineyards are based in the Santa Cruz Mountains to the south of San Francisco. These vineyards all differ slightly in terms of terroir, particularly when it comes to soil and aspect. The soil types range from clay loam to shallow, rocky soils – all giving distinct characters in the final wines. The individual vineyards' mesoclimates are largely dependent on their aspects and degrees of slope, as each has a different exposure to sunlight and breezes from the nearby Pacific. One of the vineyards, Skyline, is one of California's highest vineyards, at an altitude of 2360ft (720m) above sea level. Rhys Vineyards make a range of single-vineyard Pinot Noirs, as well as several Chardonnay and Syrah wines. The company also has a 14-hectare (35-acre) site in Anderson Valley planted to Pinot Noir and Chardonnay. In the winery, grapes are vinified by block in small, one-ton fermentation tanks. The grapes are treaded by foot, instead of using mechanical punchdowns or pumpovers. Rhys Vineyards uses natural yeasts for fermentation, and the wines are aged in French oak.

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