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Long-term Pre-arrival Items
Long Term Pre-arrival Definition: Ordering wine directly through us from our supplier partners in Europe in advance of the item’s physical arrival in the US.
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SKU 856132
$19.93/bottle
Out of stock
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An array of ripe mirabelles and plums with some blue flowers and spices. Full body. Soft, creamy texture and plush, velvety tannins with a solid core of fruit on the palate. Long, warming finish. Yet, it remains fresh. Give it another year or two of bottle age to soften the tannins. Drink or hold.
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.
Country
United States
Of all the New World wine countries, perhaps the one which has demonstrated the most flair for producing high quality wines - using a combination of traditional and forward-thinking contemporary methods - has been the United States of America. For the past couple of centuries, the United States has set about transforming much of its suitable land into vast vineyards, capable of supporting a wide variety of world-class grape varietals which thrive on both the Atlantic and the Pacific coastlines. Of course, we immediately think of sun-drenched California in regards to American wines, with its enormous vineyards responsible for the New World's finest examples of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot based wines, but many other states have taken to viticulture in a big way, with impressive results. Oregon, Washington State and New York have all developed sophisticated and technologically advanced wine cultures of their own, and the output of U.S wineries is increasing each year as more and more people are converted to their produce.
Region
California
California as a wine producing region has grown in size and importance considerably over the past couple of centuries, and today is the proud producer of more than ninety percent of the United States' wines. Indeed, if California was a country, it would be the fourth largest producer of wine in the world, with a vast range of vineyards covering almost half a million acres. The secret to California's success as a wine region has a lot to do with the high quality of its soils, and the fact that it has an extensive Pacific coastline which perfectly tempers the blazing sunshine it experiences all year round. The winds coming off the ocean cool the vines, and the natural valleys and mountainsides which make up most of the state's wine regions make for ideal areas in which to cultivate a variety of high quality grapes.
Appellation
Napa Valley
When it comes to New World wines, and especially wines from the United States of America, Napa Valley is something of a standard bearer. Over its relatively short history, it has managed to transform itself from being a fairly insignificant region, to becoming one of the most important and highly regarding wine locations on earth. With an ideal climate for viticulture, blazing sunshine and a low level of rainfall, this valley is shielded on many sides by mountain ranges which help it maintain a consistent level of heat, light and moisture throughout the year. Today, Napa Valley is a home of innovation and quality, with dozens of grape varietals thriving in the fertile soils. However, the main varietals grown there have always been Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Merlot and Zinfandel, and the wines they produce are constantly lauded by critics and competitions across the globe.
JS93pts
James Suckling
An array of ripe mirabelles and plums with some blue flowers and spices. Full body. Soft, creamy texture and plush, velvety tannins with a solid core of fruit on the palate. Long, warming finish. Yet, it remains fresh. Give it another year or two of bottle age to soften the tannins. Drink or hold.
WS90pts
Wine Spectator
Firm, with a snap of dried green herbs to the dried cherry and berry flavors. Minerally midpalate, with a finish that's filled with toasty notes and hints of mocha. Drink now through 2024. 6,000 cases made.
WE90pts
Wine Enthusiast
Softly layered in dense flavors of blueberry, mocha and baking spice, this is a food-friendly wine, with supple tannins and integrated oak. It holds its full-bodied weight and concentration well, adding 11% Cabernet Sauvignon into the mix.
Winery Notes
Our Napa Valley Merlot has expressive aromas of black cherries, blueberry compote, and violet followed by lovely hints of dark chocolate and root beer. This medium-bodied wine delights with subtle creamy texture and flavors of cherry and red currant. It concludes with black cherry and toasted oak notes that linger on the medium-to-long finish.
Quietly powerful, dense with alluring oak spices and late-picked fruit flavors, this full-bodied, velvet-textured Cabernet-dominant blend is generous and inviting…
