Winemaker Notes
This welcoming, yet plush, Merlot boasts a bouquet of raspberries and cocoa. Flavors of freshly picked cherries, plums, and cranberries add a brightness to the palate, flowing into a long, soft finish. This wine’s beautifully balanced acidity and fine tannins make it a wonderful wine to pair with food. Decanting is recommend for this wine.
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
Plush in its ripeness, bouncy in its fruit, this is a soft merlot with silken tannins finely integrated into the dark juiciness of the wine. Pour it with filet mignon. (
As Napa Valley’s third most planted grape, Napa Valley Merlot shows time and time again its potential to produce exceptional results. Napa’s vaunted combination of climate, soil and the human factor of winemaking expertise lead to big, ripe, cellar-worthy and world-class versions.
Whether made by itself in single varietal bottlings or as an important role in Bordeaux Blends, Merlot continues a prominent role in this famous region. While Cabernet typically takes the lead role, Merlot’s contribution—even at 10% to 20% or so—is significant indeed. Often described as “the flesh on Cabernet’s bones,” Merlot lends a soft, round and plush character that beautifully complements Cabernet’s linear, full-throttle structure. Its flavors of plums plus subtle herbs and mint also dovetail nicely with Cabernet’s blackberry and cassis.