Winemaker Notes
The 2022 Merlot pairs perfectly with pan-seared duck breast, grilled veal chops and pasta with lamb ragu.
Professional Ratings
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Tasting Panel
Berries are on full display, partnering elegantly with dark, luscious bramble fruit and cherry coulis plus no small amount of nutmeg, coffee, and clove courtesy of an aging regimen of 18 months in French and American oak barrels. The palate is lively and the tannins are firm but finessed.
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Vinous
The 2022 Merlot opens with a darkly floral bouquet of wild blueberries and violets, lifted by nuances of mint. Silky smooth on the palate, it offers ripe wild berry fruit and a tinge of citrus guided by juicy acidity. The finish tapers off with subtle tension and excellent length, leaving sweet tannins and a bitter hint of black tea to fade slowly. Incredibly fresh and pure, this Merlot is easy to like and a fantastic value.
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.
Composed of steep mountain slopes of ancient Salinas River origins at 900 to 1,400 feet in elevation, Santa Margarita Ranch is in the southern portion of the greater Paso Robles AVA.