Walla Walla Valley Reds

Four and a half hours from Seattle by car, the Walla Walla Valley produces tasty whites, but it’s the red wines that whet oenophiles’ palates. Syrahs—the most dense and complex in the New World—offer berry flavors and smell of smoked sausages and bacon. Cabernets are full-flavored but soft, with layers of ripe fruits and herbs, and anise, black cherry, and cassis scents. Both possess what I call “the beauty in the beast”—elegant ripe tannins wrapped in the scents of barnyard and garden herbs. —Condé Cox