The Markham Napa Merlot is sourced from multiple estate Napa Valley vineyards. Markham has been one of the leaders in California Merlot for years. Merlot fell on hard times after the movie “Sideways” came out (that was a really dopey reason to stop drinking Merlot), but Merlot has been coming back strong in recent years…
Read MoreThe Chateau Labrande Cahors is 75% Malbec, 20% Merlot and 5% Tannat sourced from the Lot region of the Cahors AOC in Southwest France. In Cahors, the Malbec grape is known as Auxerrois and the Malbec grapes grown in Argentina, while taken from France, are smaller in overall size and grow in smaller clusters. The…
Read MoreThe 2009 Hedges CMS Red is 45% Merlot, 39% Cabernet Sauvignon and 16% Syrah sourced from vineyards in Horse Heaven Hills, Wahluke Slope, Red Mountain and Columbia Valley AVA’s in Washington.The Hedges Family Winery has a campaign against wine scores , if you agree, sign the petition. This wine was aged in new French (60%) and…
Read MoreThe 2010 Primal Roots Red Blend is 43% Merlot, 37% Syrah and 20% Zinfandel sourced from multiple California grape growing AVA’s, though they say that 90% of the grapes came from the North Valley, which is a combination of several AVA’s from Lodi on up. The wine was aged in French oak barrels and the…
Read MoreThe 2010 Dr Jebediah Drinkwell’s Meritage is a Trader Joe’s ($6.99) exclusive label made for them by the Central Coast Wine Warehouse (a custom wine producer) from grapes grown in Paso Robles, California. They have been making this wine for several years and the blend from 2010 is 44% Merlot, 36% Cabernet Franc, 9% Malbec,…
Read More2009 Chateau Moulin de Beausejour Bordeaux Red is 100% Merlot classified Bordeaux Superieur, estate grown and Chateau bottled in the Saint-Emilion AOC (Right Bank) of Bordeaux, France. That is a big introduction for a $6.99 Trader Joe’s exclusive wine. The thing to know about Bordeaux wine is that vintage is everything, with all their rules…
Read MoreA lovely representation of Right Bank Bordeaux by the glass. Essentially declassified St. Emilion grapes, we have a blend of Merlot (70%), Cabernet Sauvignon (20%) and Cabernet Franc (10%). The resulting juice is light in body, elegant in style, and definitively old world in character. At first look we have a delicate garnet hue with…
Read MoreThe 2009 Chateau Auguste Merlot is something of a rarity for Bordeaux Red wines, it is a 100% single varietal Merlot and most Bordeaux wines are blends. Chateau Auguste is located south of St.-Emilion (Right Bank), which is primarily a Merlot and a little Cabernet Franc growing area. The Chateau Auguste vineyards are certified organic…
Read MoreThe 2008 Milbrandt Vineyards Traditions Merlot is 78% Merlot, 16% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Malbec and 1% Barbera sourced from several of their Estate vineyards in the Wahluke Slope sub-AVA in the Columbia Valley in Washington State. Milbrandt has 12 vineyards in the Columbia Valley and if you have had a wine produced in Columbia Valley…
Read MoreThe 2008 Alias California Merlot is 80% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Syrah sourced from multiple California wine AVA’s. Alias is a project put together by 8 unnamed winemakers (hence the Alias name) who are attempting to make “affordable luxury” wines. The website listed on the bottle is not operational, a…
Read MoreA by Acacia is the entry level label for Acacia Vineyards, a top notch producer of Chardonnay and Pinot Noir in the Carneros AVA of Napa Valley. The A by Acacia Red Blend is 85% Syrah, 10% Merlot, 2% Grenache, 2% Petite Sirah and 1% Zinfandel, the grapes were sourced from vineyards in several AVA’s…
Read MoreThe 2008 Red Diamond Merlot is 91.6% Merlot, 7% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1.4% Cabernet Franc sourced from several AVA’s in Washington State. Red Diamond Winery is owned by Chateau Ste Michelle and Wine And Spirits Magazine named the Red Diamond Merlot one of the Top Ten Merlot’s In America, you should be able to find…
Read MoreThe Domaine Sainte-Eugenie Le Clos (translates to “enclosed field or vineyard”) is a blend of 45% Merlot, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Carignan and 20% Grenache grown in Estate vineyards in the Corbieres AOC in the Languedoc, near the Mediterranean Sea in France. For some reason the Le Clos does not conform with the rules and…
Read MoreRene Barbier Mediterranean Red is a non-vintage blend of 55% Merlot and 45% Tempranillo sourced from the Catalunya D.O. located in Northeastern Spain (near Barcelona). It is available at World Market and several other retailer and sells at Trader Joe’s for $4.99. The alcohol content is 12.5%. The color is clear, shiny cherry red. The…
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