Tag Archives: Merlot

Clearview Enigma 2004

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The second wine to be served with lunch at Clearview. This time, a Merlot-dominant Bordeaux blend.Quite vegetal aromas: stalk, brambles, etc. With some time, super blackcurrent fruit leapt from the glass along with some vanilla oak. Still, a flavour profile suggesting perhaps marginal ripeness and/or a strong expression Merlot’s more “green” varietal character.The wine’s entry establishes a much more fruit-driven flavour profile than suggested on the nose, with ripe dark fruit, pepper and spice, plus edges of leafiness. Still, it’s a more elegant, savoury wine as opposed to a fruit-driven one. The middle palate fills the mouth well, showing good intensity of flavour. Very fine tannins help the flavour to adhere to the tongue and linger impressively. The wine improved with food, with the fruit flavours moving further forward in the wine’s balance. Definitely one to have with dinner as opposed to alone, where its angularity might become tiring after a few glasses.Clearview EstatePrice: $NZ40Closure: CorkDate tasted: December 2007

Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Vineyard Merlot 2005

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As the name indicates, a single vineyard wine from the Gimblett Gravels sub-region of Hawkes Bay. Mostly Merlot, with some Cabernet Franc too.Intense, slightly jammy but interesting red fruit flavours on the nose, supported by powdery vanilla oak and a distinctive clean salt water note (odd but attractive). Not hugely complex, and quite oaky, but nice nonetheless. The wine’s middle palate is disappointing in that it shows a good deal of fruit flavour, but also a prominence of oak that, for me, is detrimental to the wine’s balance. The oak continues to dominate the wine’s flavour profile as it progresses through the after palate and finish. Tannins are fine and puckeringly prominent.At the moment, this wine is way too oak-driven for my taste, and I’m not sure there’s the depth of fruit flavour to outlast the development of the oak-derived flavours in the bottle. It’s a shame because the fruit itself appears to be of good (if not outstanding) quality and interest. I’d like to see wine from this area done in a more restrained, fruit-driven style.Craggy RangePrice: $NZ29Closure: CorkDate tasted: December 2007

Ata Rangi Célèbre 2005

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Ata Ranga is well-known for its Pinot Noir, so I was curious to give this blend of Martinborough and Hawkes Bay Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot a go. I have no idea why it’s called Célèbre.
The nose is very expressive and shows a seductive blend of violets, raw meat, dark berry fruits, spice (clove-like) and a good whack of oak. There’s good intensity here, and the balance is impressive (though perhaps with the oak showing too much after some time in glass). The palate again shows good balance and a focused line. The entry is immediately flavoursome and leads to a medium/full bodied middle palate showing intense, deliciously savoury dark fruits and mouthwatering astringency. The finish is especially lovely, and showcases very fine, chocolate-like tannins, framed by caramel/vanilla oak and quite prominent sappiness.
This is an elegant wine, full of flavour and tightly structured. It lacks the complexity of the very best wines, but is seductive and balanced. I asked myself whether there was an element of underripeness, but if there is, for my taste it is question of style rather than fault. It went well with our dinner of beef and roasted vegetables, the fruit having no issues matching the intense beefy flavour of the lovely New Zealand meat.
Ata RangiPrice: $NZ32Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Villa Maria Private Bin Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon 2005

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I’m in New Zealand at the moment for a bit of a camping holiday, but roughing it doesn’t quite extend to doing without wine. In fact, I’m hoping to fit in some winery visits while I’m here, as well as taste lots of Kiwi wines of course. Tasting notes may be somewhat briefer than usual during my trip.
We got in yesterday and weren’t up for anything especially challenging, so chose this Hawkes Bay regional blend to have with dinner. A curious, unfamiliar aroma of dusty vanilla custard was initially dominant on the nose, fading to a supporting element with some time in glass. Alongside this (presumably) oak-derived note sits lovely, somewhat savoury red fruit, very easygoing without falling into a confected, industrial flavour spectrum. The wine’s entry is lively, ushering in a medium bodied palate that echoes the sweet/savoury fruit seen on the nose. On the palate, the fruit edges a little further towards facile sweetness, but there’s still a delicious savouriness to the flavour profile. There’s lively acidity all through the palate, which is well integrated and creates a feeling of sophistication in the mouth. The finish is practically tannin-free but of satisfactory length.
There’s no notable complexity of flavour, but for a quaffing wine, this is a really tasty drop that doesn’t confuse  “easy drinking” with simple fruit sweetness.
Villa MariaPrice: $NZ15Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

De Bortoli Windy Peak Cabernet Merlot 2005

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Part of a six pack of cheapies I bought the other day at Dan’s. The Windy Peak range has often surprised me with wines that substantially overdeliver at their price points. How about this Cabernet Merlot blend, then?Varietally correct aromas of dark fruits, leafiness and a rather yummy fried bacon note (plus a hint of tinned corn, or DMS). The fruit has a slightly bright, “forced smile” character that starts to suggest industrial winemaking to me, but it stops short of being truly offensive, and is well and truly balanced by more interesting tomato vine-like aromas. The entry ushers flavours to the middle palate quickly. The palate is medium bodied and neatly balanced between those just-shy-of-confected fruit flavours and more savoury elements. Tannins are quite lovely and fine, kicking in towards the rear of the palate and carrying the wine through a finish that is satisfyingly long. Not hugely complex, but balanced and well made. No doubt this wine is excellent for the price. If one might criticize it for lacking individuality, it’s hardly a serious fault at this end of the market. Having said that, it’s also just good enough to make me pine for a better wine, if that makes sense. De BortoliPrice: $A13Closure: StelvinDate tasted: December 2007

Napa Family Vineyards Napa Valley Finest Selection Reserve Merlot 2004

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Pencil shavings, olive, and strawberries dominate the nose of this wine; it’s not too shabby, but it never really seems to evolve much beyond fruitiness with an oak undertone. It’s kind of like Kool-Aid mixed with wood chips.

In the mouth, this wine seems frankly way too sweet for a Napa merlot – and it’s not sucrosité, but residual sugar I think I’m tasting here. Ewww, gross – there’s barely any acidity here at all, and the overall effect is thoroughly unpleasant. However, the tannins are fairly interesting: finely grained and almost Australian in style, they seem flown in from a much better wine. Sadly, though, the bulk of the wine just hangs there limply in the mouth, waiting for you to swallow so that you can move on to something else. In terms of flavor, there’s some indeterminate milk chocolate but that’s about it, and there’s not much in the way of length here either: once the wine’s gone, the flavor’s gone. It’s all very disappointing. I imagine this is precisely the wine Miles was talking about in Sideways – and I probably should have heeded his advice.

Napa Family Vineyards [but really fresh&easy]
Price: US $10.99
Closure: Diam
Date tasted: November 2007

Picardy Merlot Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Franc 2005

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53% Merlot, 24% Cabernet Sauvignon, 23% Cabernet Franc. Australian Merlots are a curious beast – perhaps a little like Shiraz, they can tend to be chameleon-like, morphing with region and idea of style. This one is from Pemberton in Western Australia.

The nose immediately establishes the wine’s savoury flavour profile. Genuine complexity draws one back to smell repeatedly, with savoury black fruits, leafiness and cigar box oak flavours intermingling and constantly shifting around. The linear entry opens out to a palate of medium to full body, with full yet not terribly sweet black fruit sitting alongside the same mix of leafy/green olive notes and relatively prominent oak as seen on the nose. Flavours are quite dense and of reasonable intensity. The wine’s structure at this stage is assertive, both from an acid and tannin perspective. The tannins are quite interesting in character, being relatively abundant, ripe, and moderately (but not overly) fine. They have a nice rustic edge, in fact. The wine shows a nice line with no dips through the palate, and finishes with good length.

The wine responded extremely well to a strongly flavoured pasta dish, the structure calming a little and the power of the fruit shining through. This is a very good wine with, I think, good potential for improvement through bottle age. Blindingly good value.

Picardy
Price: $A20
Closure: Cork
Date tasted: November 2007

Clonakilla Ballinderry 2004

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One sniff of this wine takes me back to the Clonakilla cellar door, where I first tasted and subsequently purchased the 2004 Ballinderry. At the time, I wasn’t sure about the wine. It seemed to be almost completely dumb on the nose, much more so than previous vintages, but I have enjoyed this Clonakilla Bordeaux blend on so many occasions that I bought a few purely on past performance.

A couple of years on, and as I say, one sniff takes me back, because it’s still quite a tight wine in terms of its nose. It is, however, starting to unwind, the way a stripper starts by peeling back the outermost layers of clothing. So I’m told. Aromas of dark, perfumed fruit emerge from the glass, with edges of leafy cabernet character and spicy, cedary oak. Very tight, coiled, but by now leaking a little.

The wine’s entry is a bit misleading, in that it is quite easygoing and quickly moves on to an elegant, medium bodied palate of pure, fleshy red berry fruit. Good intensity and complexity of flavour. But just as you begin to suspect the wine is a bit of a sheep in wolf’s clothing, the fine, ripe but rather abundant tannins make themselves felt. They don’t exactly swamp the fruit, but they are very assertive at the moment, and create a lengthy, puckeringly dry finish.

It’s pretty clear to me that this wine’s best years are ahead of it, and I may well wait 2-3 years before trying it again. Really good potential on the basis of this bottle. I’m about to tuck in to a big rump steak now and it will be interesting to see how the wine responds.

Update: food didn’t do much to tame this wine’s structure. Perhaps only time can do that.

Clonakilla
Price: $35
Closure: Cork
Date tasted: November 2007

Mike Press Wines Merlot 2005

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It’s late on Saturday night, I’ve raided the cellar looking for something to keep me company as I settle down to relax and watch a DVD. Hmm, Merlot, that sounds good. I’ve been meaning to try the Mike Press version, relatively hyped as it has been in online discussion fora and wine press. So: how good can $A10 Merlot be?

The answer is: pretty bloody good. Lifted nose of black fruits and leafiness, along with supporting caramel/mocha oak. Not explosive, but balanced and elegant. The wine slides smoothly into the mouth, whereupon flavours of black fruit and olive build and spread over the tongue. This isn’t a fruit bomb, although the fruit is delicious and ripe. Rather, there’s a nice dialogue between fruit, savoury flavours, somewhat resiny oak and a firm acid/tannin structure, all within a medium bodied palate. The wine’s line is quite focused. Finish is puckeringly tannic, but not unapproachable, and of decent length.

In absolute terms, this is a good to excellent wine that shows varietal character and a sense of style. The oak is sticking out a bit much for me at the moment, but that’s a matter of taste as much as anything else. For the price, I just don’t see what else one could ask for. I’m off to pour myself another glass.

Mike Press Wines
Price: $A120/dozen
Closure: Stelvin
Tasted: November 2007

Cameron Hughes Lot 48 Meritage 2005

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Whoa. Clouds of rich, dark chocolate, bulldust, and black olive billow up in the glass, and there’s an almost perfumed character to the wine, with a slight sweetness – it’s not unlike vetiver or sage, albeit with a lovely, restrained edge. The color’s a lovely, dark purple with nearly visible particles towards the rim; it just looks expensive, somehow.

On the palate, the first thing that strikes me is the lovely texture: firm and round, followed shortly by flavor that I can honestly only describe as delicious. There are tastes of cassia, Kalamata olive, and cassis, and it all trails off into a clean finish with hints of tannin, acid, and a lovely sweetness, almost like violet pastilles mixed in with tahini. Best of all, the finish keeps going for a while, not resolving itself; it’s a fine drink.

Cameron Hughes
Price: US $9.99
Closure: Diam
Date tasted: November 2007

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For you Aussies out there, Meritage is American for “Bordeaux blend,” more or less. This also marks the first time I’ve seen an American wine closed with a Diam technical cork, which is awesome. Finally, it may interest you to know that we don’t have cleanskins – but Cameron Hughes is pioneering what y’all would call cleanskins in the US market. If you’re in the USA, you can probably find one or two of them at your local Costco, and they also do mail order (their Lot 39 Shiraz Viognier from the Barossa is probably the most incredibly fun $10 wine I’ve had this year).