| Merlot 2007 Tasting Report |
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| Swanson 2002 – Oakville, Napa Valley, California |
Notes – On the nose you get a whiff of
crushed red fruit dipped in milk chocolate.
On the palate, the acidity is high leading
the cherry flavors to a sour note, followed
up with more milk chocolate. There are
moderate tannins left and it has a medium-
length finish. I actually believe that this
wine was aging prematurely due to poor
storage. If properly cellared, it would last
longer than most Merlots in California.
Swanson has a good track record with the
varietal and this was no exception.
crushed red fruit dipped in milk chocolate.
On the palate, the acidity is high leading
the cherry flavors to a sour note, followed
up with more milk chocolate. There are
moderate tannins left and it has a medium-
length finish. I actually believe that this
wine was aging prematurely due to poor
storage. If properly cellared, it would last
longer than most Merlots in California.
Swanson has a good track record with the
varietal and this was no exception.
| About $33.00 |
| Score B+ |
| Barefoot Cellars NV – California |
Notes – I get plenty of candied fruit in the
nose, not overly complex, but very
pleasant just the same. On the palate,
there are plenty of spices like cloves and
pepper to complement the red fruits and it
is quite tasty. This wine was supposed to
be a laugher, but instead in came within
only the slightest of margins from pulling
off the all-time greatest upset at any of our
staff tastings. Mere tenths of a point kept
it from being the winner. The moral of this
story is that you should never dismiss a
wine because of its price.
nose, not overly complex, but very
pleasant just the same. On the palate,
there are plenty of spices like cloves and
pepper to complement the red fruits and it
is quite tasty. This wine was supposed to
be a laugher, but instead in came within
only the slightest of margins from pulling
off the all-time greatest upset at any of our
staff tastings. Mere tenths of a point kept
it from being the winner. The moral of this
story is that you should never dismiss a
wine because of its price.
| Around $5.99 |
| Score B+ |
| Chateau Ste. Michelle 2003 – Columbia Valley, Washington |
Notes – Candied fruit seemed to be a
common theme in our tasting, I got more of
the same with this wine on the nose. Once
in the mouth, the fruit flavor that becomes
the most pronounced is a traditional flavor
for Merlot, that being one of plums.
Although the wine is pretty simple and
straight forward, it did have a touch of
pepper spice on the finish.
common theme in our tasting, I got more of
the same with this wine on the nose. Once
in the mouth, the fruit flavor that becomes
the most pronounced is a traditional flavor
for Merlot, that being one of plums.
Although the wine is pretty simple and
straight forward, it did have a touch of
pepper spice on the finish.
| Score B |
| About $11.00 |
| Hogue – Genesis 2001 – Columbia Valley, Washington |
Notes – Great nose here on this dame.
Nicely integrated oak with hints of dark
chocolate and red fruits. Starts off great
on the palate too with a mouthful of mocha,
cinnamon and raspberry, but then folds up
like a lawn chair on the finish and vanishes
in a New York minute. I made it my third
favorite for the nose alone though.
Nicely integrated oak with hints of dark
chocolate and red fruits. Starts off great
on the palate too with a mouthful of mocha,
cinnamon and raspberry, but then folds up
like a lawn chair on the finish and vanishes
in a New York minute. I made it my third
favorite for the nose alone though.
| Score B |
| Around $19.00 |
| McGuigan – Bin 3000 - 2005 - Limestone Coast, Australia |
and no, it was not Sheree’s pot roast I was
smelling either! Probably the thickest and
most viscous wine of the bunch, but your
taste buds are overwhelmed with more
meaty flavors and herbal veggies, I think
Notes – Aromas of beefy roasted meats
and no, it was not Sheree’s pot roast I was
smelling either! Probably the thickest and
Notes – Aromas of beefy roasted meats
and no, it was not Sheree’s pot roast I was
smelling either! Probably the thickest and
most viscous wine of the bunch, but your
taste buds are overwhelmed with more
meaty flavors and herbal veggies, I think
bay leaf was the spice of the day here. If
only someone had passed out cheese and
bread, I could have covered the four food
groups with this wine. Not at all fun on the
finish either.
smelling either! Probably the thickest and
most viscous wine of the bunch, but your
taste buds are overwhelmed with more
meaty flavors and herbal veggies, I think
Notes – Aromas of beefy roasted meats
and no, it was not Sheree’s pot roast I was
smelling either! Probably the thickest and
Notes – Aromas of beefy roasted meats
and no, it was not Sheree’s pot roast I was
smelling either! Probably the thickest and
most viscous wine of the bunch, but your
taste buds are overwhelmed with more
meaty flavors and herbal veggies, I think
bay leaf was the spice of the day here. If
only someone had passed out cheese and
bread, I could have covered the four food
groups with this wine. Not at all fun on the
finish either.
| About $11.00 |
| Score B- |
| Rubissow Sargent 2003 – Mount Veeder, Napa Valley, California |
Notes – Nose was a little closed with feint
herbal accents getting through. A good
indicator as to what was to come on the
palate. Yep, you guessed it, herbal flavors
and otherwise very green with pronounced
fennel spice and dusty earth. A bit too
acidic and awkward. Jim has treated me to
many Rubissow Sargent Cabs in the past
and they have been fantastic, so I was a bit
surprised at how this Merlot faired.
herbal accents getting through. A good
indicator as to what was to come on the
palate. Yep, you guessed it, herbal flavors
and otherwise very green with pronounced
fennel spice and dusty earth. A bit too
acidic and awkward. Jim has treated me to
many Rubissow Sargent Cabs in the past
and they have been fantastic, so I was a bit
surprised at how this Merlot faired.
| Around $30.00 |
| Score B- |
| Alexander Valley Vineyards 2004 – Alexander Valley, Sonoma, California |
Notes – It smelled really good. Plumy with
feint herbal accents and black olives. It
starts off great in the mouth, with lots of
red fruit, and then all of a sudden, it heads
way, way, way south in a hurry. I don’t
mean South Padre south, I mean Antarctica
south. There are tons of stewed tomatoes
on the finish. I’m not sure whether to drink
it or add it to a pasta sauce. Very
disappointing. We’ve come to expect a lot
more from this winery and they are the
producers of my wife’s favorite wine,
Cyrus.
feint herbal accents and black olives. It
starts off great in the mouth, with lots of
red fruit, and then all of a sudden, it heads
way, way, way south in a hurry. I don’t
mean South Padre south, I mean Antarctica
south. There are tons of stewed tomatoes
on the finish. I’m not sure whether to drink
it or add it to a pasta sauce. Very
disappointing. We’ve come to expect a lot
more from this winery and they are the
producers of my wife’s favorite wine,
Cyrus.
| About $18.00 |
| Score B- |
with wine lovers and after a huge wave of fad
success in the early nineties, and in no small
part due to the movie Sideway’s, Merlot fell
into that category. I guess you could count
our wine staff amongst the crowd of Merlot
dissers. It had been almost four years since
our staff reviewed Merlot wines. Hard to
believe, but none-the-less true enough.
We had our Merlot staff tasting at Sheree’s
house and were treated to a heaping portion
of good ‘ole Southern fair consisting of Pot
Roast and veggies with a side of rice. Just
enough to fill our bellies and get us in the
mood to taste some wines. In what seems to
be a disturbing trend lately, the food far
surpassed the performance of the wines in
question. Kudos’ to Sheree for such a great
job on dinner and for hosting our latest staff
tasting.
The staff as a whole fell down on the job this
time. What do I mean by that? Well, Merlot
is being grown and made into wine in Virtually
every wine producing nation in the world and
out of the seven wines we reviewed this
month, only one came from outside the United
States. That was from all places, Australia.
We did at least have two Merlot’s from the
Columbia Valley in Washington and they
faired reasonably well coming in third and
fourth in the voting. The rest were comprised
of two Napa Valley Merlots, an Alexander
Valley (Sonoma) Merlot and one
from…well…somewhere if not just about
anywhere in California.
I guess the biggest coup in our staff tasting
this month was pulled off by Chris, who
entered a mass-produced, very inexpensive
Merlot in the bunch. I believe he bought it as
a joke, but as it turned out, the joke was on
us! What was the wine you ask? Well, I
guess you will just have to read the reviews to
find out! And here they are:
success in the early nineties, and in no small
part due to the movie Sideway’s, Merlot fell
into that category. I guess you could count
our wine staff amongst the crowd of Merlot
dissers. It had been almost four years since
our staff reviewed Merlot wines. Hard to
believe, but none-the-less true enough.
We had our Merlot staff tasting at Sheree’s
house and were treated to a heaping portion
of good ‘ole Southern fair consisting of Pot
Roast and veggies with a side of rice. Just
enough to fill our bellies and get us in the
mood to taste some wines. In what seems to
be a disturbing trend lately, the food far
surpassed the performance of the wines in
question. Kudos’ to Sheree for such a great
job on dinner and for hosting our latest staff
tasting.
The staff as a whole fell down on the job this
time. What do I mean by that? Well, Merlot
is being grown and made into wine in Virtually
every wine producing nation in the world and
out of the seven wines we reviewed this
month, only one came from outside the United
States. That was from all places, Australia.
We did at least have two Merlot’s from the
Columbia Valley in Washington and they
faired reasonably well coming in third and
fourth in the voting. The rest were comprised
of two Napa Valley Merlots, an Alexander
Valley (Sonoma) Merlot and one
from…well…somewhere if not just about
anywhere in California.
I guess the biggest coup in our staff tasting
this month was pulled off by Chris, who
entered a mass-produced, very inexpensive
Merlot in the bunch. I believe he bought it as
a joke, but as it turned out, the joke was on
us! What was the wine you ask? Well, I
guess you will just have to read the reviews to
find out! And here they are:
