Leonetti Merlot 2008
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Wine Enthusiast
This is 100% varietal, from the Loess, Seven Hills, Pepper Bridge, and Mill Creek Upland vineyards. A deep, intense take on Merlot, it’s so dark and concentrated that it dances on the )edge of bitterness, but in a style reminiscent of the finest Italian Merlots, that use that flavor to define and elucidate a dark and potent wine. In the mouth it fills out with luscious cherry and plum and blackberry fruit, baking chocolate, coconut and nougat. Yet it remains sleek and stylish, with a strong licorice note.
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Decanter
Refined and simply magical now at the 12-year mark, this 100% Merlot shows kirsch and coffee aromas that combine with blackcurrants and cedar. The palate has a silky mouthfeel with light, supple tannins, while the bright acidity helps the wine retain a sense of youth amid layers of boysenberry preserve, mocha and tar. Sumptuous yet showing a great sense of balance, this is Washington Merlot at its best. Drinking Window 2020 - 2033
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Wine & Spirits
This beautifully perfumed merlot delivers classic Walla Walla sents of savory sundried tomato and red plum. On the palate the wine feels youthful in its concentration-it's a long way from optimal expression, but what's ther indicates a long life and plenty of complexity gowing forward. For the cellar.
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Wine
With generous fruit and supple tannins, Merlot is made in a range of styles from everyday-drinking to world-renowned and age-worthy. Merlot is the dominant variety in the wines from Bordeaux’s Right Bank regions of St. Emilion and Pomerol, where it is often blended with Cabernet Franc to spectacular result. Merlot also frequently shines on its own, particularly in California’s Napa Valley. Somm Secret—As much as Miles derided the variety in the 2004 film, Sideways, his prized 1961 Château Cheval Blanc is actually a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
Responsible for some of Washington’s most highly acclaimed wines, the Walla Walla Valley has experienced a surge in popularity in recent years and is home to both historic wineries and younger, up-and-coming producers.
The Walla Walla Valley, a Native American name meaning “many waters,” is located in southeastern Washington; part of the appellation actually extends into Oregon. Soils here are well-drained, sandy loess over Missoula Flood deposits and fractured basalt.
It is a region perfectly suited to Rhône-inspired Syrahs, distinguished by savory notes of red berry, black olive, smoke and fresh earth. Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot create a range of styles from smooth and supple to robust and well-structured. White varieties are rare but some producers blend Sauvignon Blanc with Sémillon, resulting in a rich and round style, and plantings of Viognier, while minimal, are often quite successful.
Of note within Walla Walla, is one new and very peculiar appellation, called the Rocks District of Milton-Freewater. This is the only AVA in the U.S. whose boundaries are totally defined by the soil type. Soils here look a bit like those in the acclaimed Rhône region of Chateauneuf-du-Pape, but are large, ancient, basalt cobblestones. These stones work in the same way as they do in Chateauneuf, absorbing and then radiating the sun's heat up to enhance the ripening of grape clusters. The Rocks District is within the part of Walla Walla that spills over into Oregon and naturally excels in the production of Rhône varieties like Syrah, as well as the Bordeaux varieties.