Tag Archives: merlot

Ettl Heideboden Cuvee 2023, Neusiedlersee, Austria

14 Tuesday Apr 2026

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Deep purple colored, with slight staining, and a high viscosity (14% ABV).  The nose has medium intensity aromas of black plum, cedar plank, elderberry, a medicinal note, green leafy herbs, petrichor, licorice, and acai berry.  The palate is dry, with medium (+) acidity, a medium body, and medium (+) tannins that are chalky.  Medium (+) intensity flavors solidify the black fruit and medicinal notes but it’s the ripeness of the fruit that has me curious.  The finish is medium in length and very enjoyable, thanks to the tannins that caress my gums.  It’;s an interesting blend of 75% Zweigelt ( a cross between St. Laurent and Blaufrankisch), 15% Blaufrankisch, and 10% Merlot.  It’s a tasty drop that gets 92 points from me, and at $17, it gets 5 stars.  Enjoy till 2029.  Salut….

Ettl Heideboden Cuvee

Glenelly Estate Reserve Red 2017, Stellenbosch, South Africa

05 Sunday Apr 2026

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The closer at our 43rd virtual wine tasting was this banger from Stellenbosch.  A lovely wine that I have drunk older vintages of and it did not disappoint.  The tasting group noted how opaque it was with a deep garnet color, slight staining, and medium viscosity (14.5% ABV).  The nose had medium (+) intensity aromas of floral perfume, thrift shop, mangrove, ocean spray, leather, licorice, coffee, and vanilla.  That’s quite an interesting set of descriptors, but then again, there was a decent sized crowd at this tasting.  The palate was dry, with medium (-) acidity, a full body, and high tannins.  Medium (+) intensity flavors echoed the nose but we also got some blackberry, black cherry, and green pepper- consistent with the blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc.  Delicious but young- this wine will cellar nicely till 2037 if it’s at all like it’s older siblings.  91 points from me and 17/20 on our tasting sheet.  We paid $22 last August, making this an amazing deal and worthy of 5 stars.  Salut….

Glenelly Estate Reserve Red

King Family Vineyards Meritage 2022, Monticello, Virginia

21 Wednesday Jan 2026

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Deep ruby bordering on garnet colored, with medium viscosity (14% ABV).  The nose has medium intensity aromas of tobacco, blackberry, cassis, black plum, pine needles, coffee, and bramble berry.  The palate is dry, with medium acidity, a medium (+) body, and medium (+) tannins.  Medium (+) intensity flavors of black fruit with some tobacco, coffee, oak, spice box, and vanilla.  The finish is medium in length but I also get some heat on the back end.  I like this blend of 51% Merlot, 24% Petit Verdot, 23% Cabernet Franc and 2% Malbec- definitively a Right Bank style, sans Cab Sav.  It grows on me as I sip it, garnering more points for its smoothness and richness.  92 points seems fair from me for this $37 bottle, making it a 5 star wine.  Drink till 2033.  Salut….

King Family Vineyards Meritage

King Family Vineyards Crosé Rose 2024, Monticello, Virginia

19 Monday Jan 2026

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Pale peach colored with a watery sheen, indicating low viscosity (11% ABV).  On the nose I get medium intensity aromas of strawberry, papaya, grapefruit pith, almond, and lanolin. The palate is dry with medium acidity and a medium (-) body. Medium intensity flavors of strawberry slushy, grapefruit, papaya and a white flower note. The finish is medium (-) in length. We are pairing this Merlot based wine with Vietnamese rolls. It gets 87 points from me and at $23 ex-chateau, it gets 3 stars.  Drink now.  Salut….

King Family Vineyards Crose Rose

 

Chateau Saint-Roch 2016, Saint-Estephe, France

13 Saturday Dec 2025

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Medium ruby colored, with a medium viscosity (13% ABV).  The nose has medium (+) intensity aromas of tobacco, cassis, blackberry, green herbs, honey, a touch of earth, and petrichor.  The palate is dry, with medium (+) acidity, a medium (-) body, and medium tannins that are slightly overwhelmed by the acidity.  Medium intensity flavors of cassis, black raspberry, rhubarb, green herbs, and sour red cherries.  It’s an interesting wine that smells one way, and tastes another.  The shortish finish is quite tart, and lacking much fruit.  I want to give this bottle a chance to soften up, but for now it’s an 87 point wine at best.  I bought it at a wine shop in Paris and forgot to write down the price.  Drink till 2028.  Salut….

Chateau Saint-Roch

Lachini Vineyards ‘La Contrada’ Red 2018, Walla Valley, Washington

15 Tuesday Jul 2025

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Deep, inky purple colored, with slight staining, and a high viscosity (14.6% ABV).  The nose has medium (+) intensity aromas of cassis, blackberry compote, coffee, vanilla bean, dried herbs, sweet pomegranate syrup, milk chocolate, and acai berry.  The palate is dry, with medium (+) acidity, a medium (+) body, and medium (+) tannins.  The flavors are quite pronounced and delicious.  They mimic the nose and really show off the Bordeaux-style blend of 75% Cab Sav and 25% Merlot.  It’s got length and breadth with a long finish.  This is a youthful wine that has great cellaring potential but is drinkable right away.  Lovely stuff to pair with game meats, grilled steaks or a lamb chop.  93 points for this $55 bottle makes it a 5 star effort in my opinion. Drink till 2035.  Salut….

Lachini Vineyards ‘La Contrada’ Red

Lachini Vineyards ‘La Contrada’ Red 2017, Walla Walla Valley, Washington

27 Tuesday May 2025

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Deep ruby colored, with slight staining, and high viscosity (15.4% ABV).  The nose has medium (+) intensity aromas of cassis, blackberry, black plum, vanilla, acai berry, mint, eucalyptus, and espresso bean.  The palate is dry, with medium acidity, a medium (+) body, and medium (+) tannins that are quite grippy.  Dark fruit coupled with lavish, yet well integrated oak make for a very rich and satisfying mouthfeel.  The vanilla was very obvious on the nose but more subtle on the palate, as are the herbal notes- allowing the fruit to dominate the flavors.  The finish is medium (+) in length where it shows off the ripeness of the grapes, which are an 83/17 blend of Cab Sav/Merlot.  The tannins leave me with a dry palate after it’s all said and done, the youth and structure of this wine being quite obvious at this point.  I like it, 93 points worth and for the price of $55 it gets 4 stars.  Drink this youthful wine till 2034.  Salut….

Lachini Vineyards 'La Contrada' Red

St Thomas le Merlot A 2005, Bekaa Valley, Lebanon

10 Friday Jan 2025

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Deep garnet colored with amber highlights, moderate staining and medium viscosity (No back label and no ABV info posted).  The nose of this aged Merlot has medium (+) intensity aromas of mushroom, truffles, baked earth, dried blackberry, game, cocoa, coffee, blueberry ganache, prunes, and leather.  Simply stunning.  The palate is dry with medium acidity, a medium (+) body and medium (+) tannins that are still a touch gritty with some bite.  The secondary notes of mushroom, truffles, earth, and leather dominate this complex and layered wine.  The fruit shows in a dried and mature way giving way to the evolution.  The finish is quite a dry affair, the tannins are still fearsome but the length is long and slightly tart.  This wine is a chameleon- the nose is so complex and mature yet the tannic structure is interfering, refusing to meld away.  Here are the disclaimers- this bottle can only be purchased ex-cellar.  My cousins own the winery.  This bottle is in magnum and I used my Coravin to taste it in anticipation of dinner at a steak house tonight.  There.  It’s a delightful wine that gets 94 points from me and what the heck- 5 stars as pricing is unknown.  This winery continues to show me the power of well made Lebanese wines and how they manage to age so beautifully.  Salut….

st Thomas merlot A

Clos Apalta 2013, Colchagua Valley, Chile

05 Sunday Jan 2025

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Closing out the series at our 38th virtual wine tasting was this stunner.  I ordered it months before in anticipation of going out with a bang and I was not disappointed.  The group loved it and the notes were as follows: deep ruby fading to garnet colored, with slight staining and a high viscosity (15% ABV).  The nose started out funky- “Donkey butt in a barn” was the initial call, followed by aromas of green pepper, black cherry for days, a combo of red and black licorice, cedar, Jujubes, sassafras akin to root beer, layers of ripe black fruits, smoke, and vanilla on the finish.  The palate had medium acidity, a medium (+) body, and medium (+) tannins that are well integrated.  A spectacular wine whose flavors echoed the nose- we all just sat there and stopped taking notes, savoring the complexity and finesse. The only loss of points for me was the medium finish, I had hoped for longer.  It would have scored a perfect 20 if so.  I will rate this $130 bottle at 96 points and award it 5 stars.  What a treat!  Carmenere based at 70% with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot supporting.  Drink till 2035.  Salut….

Clos Apalta

Barboursville Vineyards Octagon 2017, Monticello, Virginia

15 Sunday Dec 2024

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Deep ruby colored with slight staining and a high viscosity (13.5% ABV).  The nose has medium intensity aromas of pencil lead, blackberry, cassis, menthol, orange peel, bramble berry, black plum, and coffee.  The palate is dry with medium acidity, a medium (+) body, and medium (+) tannins that build on the mid palate.  Medium intensity flavors of blackberry, plum, cassis, bramble berry, coffee, menthol, and graphite.  The finish is very dry and long.  The tannins really grip here along with some juicy acidity.  It’s a delicious wine that is evolving nicely but I think the 2016 might be better (I gave it 93 points).  This one gets 91 points from me and at $95 it gets 3 stars.  I’m pairing with Sunday roast for the treat.  A classic Right Bank blend of Merlot, Cab Franc and Petit Verdot.  Salut….

barboursville octagon