Winemaker Notes
Since its bottling, this Pinot has developed an exciting, intense aroma loaded with its signature cocoa butter. It’s syrupy and thick with blueberry jam, black cherry, dark bramble fruit and cassis. It’s a one-cooper wine, preferring to age comfortably each year in only François Frères barrels, which impart notes of exotic spices, thick-cut bacon and prosciutto. The palate shows off a rich, ripe entry and then reveals a long, smooth finish, supported by good acidity. Tannins are firm, yet juicy and generous, providing great structure and ageability.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Velvety smooth in feel and resplendent in a rose petal aroma, thisis a lovely, full-bodied wine with depth and concentration. Deftly defined layers of dark cherry and tangerine shine bright, allowing for a refreshing complement to the wine’s overall depth and power.
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Connoisseurs' Guide
It is hard not to be impressed by the across-the-board success of Merry Edwards in 2016, and, while this effort comes as being a bit backward and brooding just now, it is as deep as it is tight and packed with dark and extracted fruit that will take some time to fully emerge. We like its prospects, but patience is clearly needed, and it is best set aside for no less than four or five years.
Merry Edwards Winery was founded in 1997 and produces critically acclaimed terroir-driven Pinot Noirs and Sauvignon Blanc using site-specific viticulture in the Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast appellations. Over two decades, Merry assembled a stellar collection of vineyards and with her meticulous attention to detail crafted Pinot Noirs of immense depth, elegant structure and exceptional longevity. Her Sauvignon Blanc is among the most sought after in the world.
Now a Certified California Sustainable Winery, the brand entered a new chapter after Merry’s retirement. Merry’s handpicked successor, Winemaker Heidi von der Mehden, and Winery President Nicole Carter have taken up exactly where Merry left off and will continue to make wines treasured by legions of Merry Edwards’ fans well into the future.
While the Russian River Valley is a large appellation with multiple climate zones and soil types, it is best known for cool-climate varieties, with Pinot Noir as the most celebrated. The grapes benefit from a reliable late afternoon flow of Pacific Ocean fog through the Petaluma Gap and along the Russian River Valley that ensures slow and steady ripening and the preservation of grape acidity. Today many of California’s most highly regarded Pinot Noir vineyards are in the Russian River Valley, along with its sub-appellation, Green Valley.
Historically Russian River Valley Pinot Noirs had bright red fruit and delicate earthy, mineral notes. But changes in viticultural and winemaking practices have led to stylistic changes in some of the region’s wines. Adjustments to canopy management, among other techniques, have resulted in riper fruit and bolder wines as well. These show flavors of black cherry, blackberry, cola, spice and darker, loamy earth tones, accenting traditional Pinot Noir notes of strawberry, raspberry and light cherry.