Winemaker Notes
The energy from 2019 seems to have concentrated and focused the Arietta Hudson Vineyards Merlot, and added a weight and depth that is found only in outstanding vintages. The wine seems supercharged, with a pointedly robust midpalate, intense black fruit aromas, and a strength and length that is downright exciting. This eminently enjoyable wine is deep and layered, but also buoyant and uplifting.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Always a standout from this winning combination of site and producer, this is a 100% varietal vineyard-designate, from the cool landscape of Carneros. Rainier cherry, cassis and a dusting of baking spice highlight a seamless body of integrated tannin and oak, the wine offering power but also enduring elegance. While enjoyable now, it will benefit from further aging; enjoy best 2029–2039.
Cellar Selection -
Jeb Dunnuck
Lots of up-front black cherry, currants, leafy herbs, and violet/flower notes, as well as a hints of marine-like salinity and iron, emerge from the 2019 Merlot Hudson Vineyards, another medium to full-bodied, pure, beautifully balanced wine. It too should keep for over a decade.
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James Suckling
Aromas of ripe plums, chocolate, walnuts, tobacco leaf and hazelnuts. Some orange zest, too. It’s full-bodied with plush tannins and a fleshy texture. Deliciously creamy. 100% merlot. Drink now or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Deep garnet-purple in color, the 2019 Merlot Hudson Vineyards prances out of the glass with notions of stewed black plums, blueberries and boysenberries, plus hints of star anise, bay leaves and tilled loam. Full-bodied, soft and juicy, the palate has bags of bright black fruits with a lively line and lifted finish.
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.
Known for elegant wines that combine power and finesse, Carneros is set in the rolling hills that straddle the southernmost parts of both Sonoma and Napa counties. The cooling winds from the abutting San Pablo Bay, combined with lots of midday California sunshine, create an ideal environment for producing wines with a perfect balance of crisp acidity and well-ripened fruit.
This cooler pocket of California lends itself to growing Pinot Noir, Chardonnay and Syrah. Carneros is an important source of sparkling wines made in the style of Champagne as well.