Winemaker Notes
The dry and warm 2021 growing season led to a small Merlot crop of tremendous quality with intense flavor concentration. The wine has a dark blue-purple hue and a corresponding aroma profile of baked blueberries, fresh cut thyme, subtle baking spices, and crushed stones.
Blend: 84% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Franc
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Attractive merlot with notes of blackberries and blueberries on offer as well as hints of Indian spices, violets and red licorice. Medium- to full-bodied with firm and tightly packed but very velvety tannins. Long and a little chewy at the end. Serious.
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Jeb Dunnuck
There's some seriously good Merlot coming from this vineyard in the Carneros region of Napa Valley, and I loved the 2021 Merlot Hudson Vineyards. Ripe black cherries, chocolaty herbs, and spicy notes flow to a medium to full-bodied, concentrated Merlot with lots of building tannins. It's a touch firm and focused today, so give bottles a few years in the cellar.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2021 Merlot Hudson Vineyards includes a substantial amount of Cabernet Franc (16%). It's that component that no doubt contributes intriguing accents of pipe tobacco to the notes of black cherries and cedar that otherwise abound. The wine is medium to full-bodied, perhaps a bit broad and velvety soft in the mouth but with ample concentration. There's a bit of structure and firm tannins on the finish. Rating: 91+
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.