Pepper Bridge Winery Merlot 2012
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Blend: 78% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Franc, 7% Malbec
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A classic, age-worthy Merlot from this estate, the 2012 Walla Walla Merlot, which spent 17 months in 38% new French oak, offers superb aromatics of chocolate-covered cherries, hints of leafy herbs, leather and licorice. These all flow to a medium to full-bodied, layered and polished Merlot that has a great mid-palate and enough tannic grip to keep it drinking nicely over the coming decade or more.
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Wine & Spirits
Scents of cherry and brown sugar spice inform this sleek, mildly tannic merlot from the Pepper Bridge estate vineyards—including Octave, its newest vineyard, part of the SeVein project. The wine’s smoked tomato and cherry flavors are supported by plenty of structure, and could benefit from some time in the cellar.
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Wine Enthusiast
Truly a Bordeaux-style blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Malbec from Seven Hills (51%), Pepper Bridge (32%) and Octave vineyards, this wine offers aromas of wood, dark raspberry and licorice. The supple, reserved fruit flavors bring plenty of appeal. Give it time for the oak to fully integrate.
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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.