×
Red
750ml
Bottle: $189.94
The 1998 Calon-Ségur, blended of 55% Cabernet Sauvignon, 35% Merlot, 8% Cabernet Franc and 2% Petit Verdot, is deep...
12 FREE
WA
93
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $134.85
A smooth, delicious wine. The fruit flavors go right through this ripe, complex wine, leaving the tannins and wood as...
12 FREE
WE
93
WA
91
Red
750ml
Bottle: $153.00
12 bottles: $144.78
Blackberry and licorice aromas, with full body, very fine tannins and a long finish. Very silky. So much for jammy...
12 FREE
WS
92
JS
91
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $81.94
12 FREE
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $1189.08 $1321.20
A blend of 81% Cabernet Sauvignon and 19% Merlot, the 1998 Lafite Rothschild is deep garnet with a hint of brick and...
12 FREE
WA
96
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $1579.23 $1754.70
The 2003 Lafite Rothschild comes as close to perfection as any of the great Lafites made over the past three decades...
12 FREE
WA
100
JS
98
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $286.74 $318.60
This is more exotic and monstrous than the 2000. It is like a muscle builder, with lots of round and rich tannins and...
12 FREE
JS
97
DC
96
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $638.55 $709.50
An evocative nose with perfumed aromas jumping out of the glass. This balances intensity with freshness giving sour...
12 FREE
DC
96
W&S
96
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $221.58 $246.20
Not a great vintage (very hot August, rain in the last half of September), but the Merlot was luscious and wines made...
12 FREE
DC
92
WA
90
Red
750ml
Bottle: $128.95
6 bottles: $126.37
The first vintage for the Dillon family, who purchased this estate in 1997, the 1998 Château Nenin is a sexy, ripe,...
12 FREE
WS
92
JD
92
Sale
Red
750ml
Bottle: $119.95 $127.80
Full red-ruby. Vinous aromas of currant, milk chocolate, tobacco, hot stones and leather. Juicy and fresh but leaner...
12 FREE
WA
91
VM
91
Case only
Red
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $92.40
12 FREE
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $346.78
This 7,500-case blend of 62% Merlot and 38% Cabernet Franc is one of the strongest wines of the vintage. A deep...
WA
95
W&S
95
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $1035.62
Amazing! The limestone soils of Ausone appear to have been the perfect foil for resisting the extreme heat and...
WA
100
WS
96
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $95.77
Very grapey and fresh on the nose, with hints of flowers. Full-bodied, with very well-integrated tannins and a...
WS
92
WA
91
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $57.70
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $141.48
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 6
Bottle: $54.95
Lots of coffee and chocolate, with plum and dried cherries. Full-bodied with round yet fine tannins, and a fruity...
JS
92
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $101.36
Case only
Long-term Pre-Arrival
Red
750ml - Case of 12
Bottle: $168.05
Loads of crushed berries, with mineral, lightly toasted oak and licorice. Full-bodied, with big, velvety tannins and...
WS
95
VM
94

Merlot Red Bordeaux 1998 2003 2004 750ml

With its dark blue colored fruits and high juice content, Merlot varietal grapes have long been a favorite of wine producers around the globe, with it being found in vineyards across Europe, the Americas and elsewhere in the New World. One of the distinguishing features of Merlot grapes is the fact that they have a relatively low tannin content and an exceptionally soft and fleshy character, meaning they are capable of producing incredibly rounded and mellow wines. This mellowness is balanced with plenty of flavor, however, and has made Merlot grapes the varietal of choice for softening other, more astringent and tannin-heavy wines, often resulting in truly exceptional produce. Merlot is regarded as one of the key 'Bordeaux' varietals for precisely this reason; when combined with the drier Cabernet Sauvignon, it is capable of blending beautifully to produce some of the finest wines available in the world.

There are few regions in the world with stricter regulations in regards to wine production and grape varietals than those found in Bordeaux, France. Here, in the home of the world's finest wines, the type and quality of grapes used is of utmost importance, and the legendary wineries which work on the banks of the Gironde river have mastered the careful art of juice blending to find the perfect balance for their produce. Whilst there are six 'official' Bordeaux grapes, the two key varietals for almost every fine Bordeaux wine are Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, and with good reason. Whilst Cabernet Sauvignon grapes are renowned for their acidity and astringency, strong fruit and spice flavors and full body, Merlot grapes are notably rounded, soft, fleshy and lighter on tannin. The combination of these two varietals, along with a small percentage of (commonly) Petit Verdot or Cabernet Franc, is the perfect balancing act – the two grape varietals cancel out each others weaker points, and accentuate all that is good about the other.