Super Merlot Wine Tasting with Special Guest Dr. Robert Maliner

Friday, June 25, 2021 - 07:30 PM

This Event has been read: 894 times.

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Jack: If they want to drink Merlot, we're drinking Merlot.

Miles Raymond: No, if anyone orders Merlot, I'm leaving. I am NOT drinking any fu*&^% Merlot!

 

 

Merlot is the second most planted varietal on the planet earth, although its popularity has helped give this outstanding varietal an identity crisis.

The name Merlot is thought to be a diminutive of merle, the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the color of the grape. Its softness and "fleshiness", combined with its earlier ripening, makes Merlot a popular grape for blending with the sterner, later-ripening Cabernet Sauvignon, which tends to be higher in tannin.

When done right Merlot is one of the greatest wines on the planet.  When it is done wrong it is one of the least enjoyable of all wines.  After the boom of the late 1990’s which was sparked by the nations’ most popular news programs 60 minutes expose called “the French Paradox” where they discovered that the consumption of wine was linked to superior heath in people from France.  The U.S. started drinking more wine and Merlot was the bell of the ball so wineries planted this finicky varietal all over the state of California and beyond to quench the demand for this healthy elixir.  

Little did they know that there are only a few places on earth that can make exceptional Merlot.  So it may have been Merlot’s good fortune that Miles in the movie “Sideways” slowed the popularity of this varietal and stopped wineries from planting this varietal in all the wrong places.

There are only a few places on earth where Merlot can reach greatness: Bordeaux (the homeland for this varietal), Italy, Washington State, Northern California and South Australia. So, we have included all the wines we have in the store from these regions on this offering.

Tonight, we will experience the best Merlot that Italy has to offer all from the cellars of Dr. Robert Maliner.  Join us as we experience a dozen wines back to the 1987 vintage along with a special five course tasting menu to accompany these great vintage Italian Merlot.  The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $395 + tax, for reservations  call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com

 

Super Italian Merlot Tasting
With Special Guest Dr. Robert Maliner
Friday, June 25th, 2021
7:30pm

 

1987 Castello di Ama L’Apparita Tuscany

1994 Ornellaia Masseto Tuscany

1995 Famiglia Cotarella Falesco  Montiano Lazio

1996  Tenuta di Ghizzano Namrut Rosso Tuscany

1996 Tua Rita Redigaffi Tuscany

1997 Siepi, Mazzei Castello di Fonterutoli (50% Merlot, 50% Sangiovese) Tuscany

1997  Salamartano,  Fattoria Montellori, Tuscany  (50% Merlot, 50% Cabernet Sauvignon)

1997  Tua Rita Giusto di Notri, Tuscany  (45% Merlot,  55% Cabernet Sauvignon)

2000 La Macchile Messorio Tuscany

2000 San Giusto a Renennano La Ricolma Tuscany

2007 Mataroccio Guado al Tasso Tuscany

2012  Plantonaia, Podere Poggio Scalette, Tuscany

 

Menu

Selection of Cheese and Charcutere
Bone Marrow Canoes with Lemon Gremolata
Pork Belly Carbonara
Venison Chop with Blueberry BBQ

 

The fee for this tasting which includes dinner is $395 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.

 

Origins of Merlot:

In the late 1990s, researchers at University of California, Davis showed that Merlot is an offspring of Cabernet Franc and is a half-sibling of Carménère, Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. The identity of the second parent of Merlot wouldn't be discovered till the late 2000s when an obscure and unnamed variety, first sampled in 1996 from vines growing in an abandoned vineyard in Saint-Suliac in Brittany, was shown by DNA analysis to be the mother of Merlot.

This grape, later discovered in front of houses as a decorative vine in the villages of Figers, Mainxe, Saint-Savinien and Tanzac in the Poitou-Charentes was colloquially known as Madeleina or Raisin de La Madeleine due to its propensity to be fully ripe and ready for harvest around the July 22nd feast day of Mary Magdalene. As the connection to Merlot became known, the grape was formally registered under the name Magdeleine Noire des Charentes. Through its relationship with Magdeleine Noire des Charentes Merlot is related to the Southwest France wine grape Abouriou, though the exact nature of that relationship (with Abouriou potentially being either a parent of Magdeleine Noire or an offspring) is not yet known.

Grape breeders have used Merlot crossed with other grapes to create several new varieties including Carmine (an Olmo grape made by crossing a Carignan x Cabernet Sauvignon cross with Merlot), Ederena (with Abouriou), Evmolpia (with Mavrud), Fertilia (with Raboso Veronese), Mamaia (a Romanian wine grape made by crossing a Muscat Ottonel x Babeasca negra cross with Merlot), Nigra (with Barbera), Prodest (with Barbera) and Rebo (with Teroldego).

Over the years, Merlot has spawned on color mutation that is used commercially, a pink-skinned variety known as Merlot gris. However, unlike the relationship between Grenache noir and Grenache blanc or Pinot noir and Pinot blanc, the variety known as Merlot blanc is not a color mutation but rather an offspring variety of Merlot crossing with Folle blanche.

 

Italian Merlot from this tasting

 

See the source image

 

2017 Tenuta Dell Ornellaia Masseto
Price: $815.00    Your Price: $717.20          Quantity in Stock: 6

2016 Tenuta Dell Ornellaia Masseto Tuscany 3 Liter
Price: $4950.00  Your Price: $4356.00        Quantity in Stock: 1

 

See the source image

 

2016 Tenuta San Giusto a Rentennano Merlot Toscana La Ricolma
Price: $375.00    Your Price: $330.00          Quantity in Stock: 6

2014 Tenuta San Guisto a Rentennano Merlot Toscana La Ricolma
Price: $168.00    Your Price: $147.84          Quantity in Stock: 3

 

The Rest of the Italian Merlot in the store.

2014 Avignonesi Desiderio Merlot
Price: $52.25       Sale Price: $45.98             Quantity in Stock: 11

2016 Scarbolo Merlot Fruili
Price: $19.75       Your Price: $17.38            Quantity in Stock: 3

2003 Baracchi Smeriglio Cortona Merlot
Price: $29.00       Your Price: $25.52            Quantity in Stock: 4

2005 Baracchi Smeriglio Merlot Cortona
Price: $29.00       Your Price: $25.52            Quantity in Stock: 2

2004 Baracchi Smeriglio Cortona Merlot
Price: $29.00       Your Price: $25.52            Quantity in Stock: 3

2007 Castello delle Regine Merlot
Price: $53.25       Your Price: $46.86            Quantity in Stock: 8

2002 Weingut Untermoserhof Ramoser Merlot Sudtiroler
Price: $45.00       Your Price: $39.60            Quantity in Stock: 3

 

 

Saint Emilion – An amazing collection of Merlot

2000 Chateau Pavie St. Emilion
Price: $695.00 Sale Price: $575.00     Quantity in Stock: 1

2005 Chateau Pavie St Emilion
Price: $495.00 Sale Price: $395.00     Quantity in Stock: 1

2015 Chateau Fombrauge St Emilion
Price: $67.50   Your Price: $59.40      Quantity in Stock: 11

2005 Chateau Faugeres St. Emilion
Price: $89.00   Sale Price: $69.00       Quantity in Stock: 13

2011 Chateau La Dominique St. Emilion
Price: $67.00   Your Price: $58.96      Quantity in Stock: 1

2015 Chateau La Dominique St. Emilion
Price: $102.00 Your Price: $89.76      Quantity in Stock: 8

2014 Relais de la Dominique St. Emilion
Price: $34.50   Your Price: $30.36      Quantity in Stock: 10

2005 Chateau Lucia St. Emilion
Price: $115.00 Sale Price: $99.00       Quantity in Stock: 11

2006 Chateau Troplong Mondot St Emilion
Price: $153.50 Your Price: $135.08    Quantity in Stock: 18

2015 Chateau Grand Mayne St Emilion
Price: $84.00   Your Price: $73.92      Quantity in Stock: 19

2016 Chateau Lassegue De Cadrans St. Emilion
Price: $26.50   Your Price: $23.32      Quantity in Stock: 15

2010 Chateau Pavie Macquin St. Emilion
Price: $262.50 Your Price: $231.00    Quantity in Stock: 3

2008 Sanctus de la Bienfaisance St Emilion Grand Cru
Price: $75.00   Your Price: $66.00      Quantity in Stock: 3

2016 Chateau Clos De L'Oratoire St. Emilion
Price: $84.00   Your Price: $73.92      Quantity in Stock: 12

1998 Chateau Larcis Ducasse Saint Emilion
Price: $119.00 Your Price: $104.72    Quantity in Stock: 3

2012 Chateau Tauzinat L'Hermitage St. Emilion Grand Cru
Price: $30.00   Your Price: $26.40      Quantity in Stock: 21

2005 Chateau La Grande Clotte Lussac Saint Emilion
Price: $29.00   Sale Price: $25.00       Quantity in Stock: 1

2010 Chateau La Grande Clotte Lussac-Saint-Emilion Blanc
Price: $27.00   Your Price: $23.76      Quantity in Stock: 29

2015 Fait Main Todeschini Asteria Vineyards Saint Emilion Grand Cru
Price: $235.00 Your Price: $206.80    Quantity in Stock: 12

2018 Chateau Fleur Cardinale Saint Emilion Grand Cru Magnum Edition Hard Rock
Price: $225.00 Your Price: $198.00    Quantity in Stock: 5

 

Pomerol – Never Classified Always Classy!

 

2008 Chateau Le Pin Pomerol
Price: $4200.00           Sale Price: $3250.00   Quantity in Stock: 1

1989 Chateau Petrus Pomerol
Price: $5999.00           Your Price: $5279.12  Quantity in Stock: 1

1937 Château La Conseillante Pomerol
Price: $1200.00           Sale Price: $999.00     Quantity in Stock: 1

1995 Chateau Petrus Pomerol
Price: $4500.00           Your Price: $3960.00  Quantity in Stock: 2

1998 Chateau Petrus Pomerol
Price: $5500.00           Sale Price: $4500.00   Quantity in Stock: 1

2015 Chateau Le Bon Pasteur Pomerol
Price: $142.50 Your Price: $125.40    Quantity in Stock: 12

1998 Chateau L'Evangile Pomerol
Price: $345.00 Your Price: $303.60    Quantity in Stock: 6

1966 Domaine de L'Eglise Pomerol
Price: $270.00 Sale Price: $210.00     Quantity in Stock: 1

1986 Chateau Lafleur Pomerol
Price: $1500.00           Sale Price: $1149.00   Quantity in Stock: 1

2016 Chateau Marzy Pomerol
Price: $40.50   Your Price: $35.64      Quantity in Stock: 11

1990 Chateau Petrus Pomerol
Price: $5999.00           Your Price: $5279.12  Quantity in Stock: 1

2018 Chateau De Sales Pomerol
Price: $52.50   Your Price: $46.20      Quantity in Stock: 12

2015 Chateau La Conseillante Pomerol
Price: $258.00 Your Price: $227.04    Quantity in Stock: 4

2010 Le Plus de La Fleur de Bouard Lalande de Pomerol
Price: $139.00 Your Price: $122.32    Quantity in Stock: 4

1979 Chateau Petrus Pomerol 375ml
Price: $1500.00           Sale Price: $1250.00   Quantity in Stock: 1

2015 Chateau Petit Village Pomerol
Price: $111.00 Your Price: $97.68      Quantity in Stock: 13

2015 La Fleur Saint Georges Lalande de Pomerol
Price: $27.00   our Price: $23.76        Quantity in Stock: 15

2014 Chateau Gombaude Guillot Pomerol Magnum 1.5L
Price: $250.00 Your Price: $220.00    Quantity in Stock: 6

 

California Merlot

2017 Emmolo Merlot Napa
Price: $45.00       Your Price: $39.60            Quantity in Stock: 1

2017 Decoy Merlot Sonoma
Price: $22.50       Your Price: $19.80            Quantity in Stock: 1

2018 Plumpjack Merlot Napa
Price: $72.00       Your Price: $63.36           
Quantity in Stock: 10

2013 Thorn Merlot Napa
Price: $37.50       Your Price: $33.00            Quantity in Stock: 1

2018 Swanson Merlot Napa
Price: $30.00       Your Price: $26.40            Quantity in Stock: 15

2016 Camp Merlot Sonoma
Price: $19.75       Your Price: $17.38            Quantity in Stock: 1

2017 Duckhorn Merlot Napa
Price: $43.50       Your Price: $38.28            Quantity in Stock: 8

2017 Josh Merlot California
Price: $15.75       Your Price: $13.86            Quantity in Stock: 11

2018 Lewis Merlot Napa
Price: $99.00       Your Price: $87.12            Quantity in Stock: 5

2014 Ehlers Estate Merlot Napa
Price: $45.00       Your Price: $39.60            Quantity in Stock: 8

2017 Charles Krug Merlot Napa
Price: $23.75       Your Price: $20.90            Quantity in Stock: 7

2016 Acre Merlot Napa Valley
Price: $28.50       Sale Price: $25.08             Quantity in Stock: 1

2018 Acre Merlot Napa Valley
Price: $42.00       Your Price: $36.96            Quantity in Stock: 12

2014 Arietta Merlot Hudson Vineyard
Price: $84.00       Your Price: $73.92            Quantity in Stock: 1

2016 Arietta Merlot Hudson Vineyard Napa
Price: $75.00       Your Price: $66.00            Quantity in Stock: 6

2010 La Jota Vineyard Merlot Howell Mountain
Price: $95.00       Sale Price: $80.00             Quantity in Stock: 3

2016 La Jota Merlot Howell Mountain Napa
 Price: $93.00      Your Price: $81.84            Quantity in Stock: 5

2018 Gundlach Bundschu Merlot Sonoma Valley
Price: $36.75       Your Price: $32.34            Quantity in Stock: 16

2014 Duckhorn Vineyards Three Palms Vineyard Merlot
Price: $199.00    Your Price: $175.12          Quantity in Stock: 8

2016 Stags Leap Winery Merlot Napa
Price: $36.00       Your Price: $31.68            Quantity in Stock: 8

2013 La Jota Vineyard W. S. Keyes Merlot Howell Mountain
Price: $177.00    Sale Price: $150.00           Quantity in Stock: 4

2012 La Jota Vineyard W. S. Keyes Merlot Howell Mountain
Price: $177.00    Sale Price: $150.00           Quantity in Stock: 3

2010 La Jota Vineyard W. S. Keyes Merlot Howell Mountain
Price: $177.00    Sale Price: $150.00           Quantity in Stock: 9

2005 Sullivan Vineyards Estate Bottled Merlot Rutherford Napa
Price: $118.00    Sale Price: $100.00           Quantity in Stock: 10

2006 Sullivan Vineyards Estate Bottled Merlot Rutherford Napa
Price: $118.00    Sale Price: $100.00           Quantity in Stock: 10

2015 Kendall Jackson Vintners Reserve Merlot Sonoma County
Price: $18.00       Your Price: $15.84            Quantity in Stock: 7

2015 St. Supery Rutherford Estate Vineyard Merlot Napa Valley
Price: $48.00       Your Price: $42.24            Quantity in Stock: 8

2016 Mount Brave Merlot Mount Veeder Napa
Price: $82.50       Your Price: $72.60            Quantity in Stock: 10

2011 Rancho Sisquoc Winery Flood Family Vineyards Merlot Santa Barbara
Price: $32.00       Sale Price: $25.00             Quantity in Stock: 1

 

Washington State Merlot

 

2018 Leonetti Merlot Columbia Valley
Price: $108.00    Your Price: $95.04            Quantity in Stock: 6

2015 Tamarack Cellars Merlot Columbia Valley
Price: $24.75       Your Price: $21.78            Quantity in Stock: 1

2014 Pepper Bridge Merlot Columbia Valley
Price: $63.75       Your Price: $56.10            Quantity in Stock: 3

2018 Bookwalter Readers Merlot Columbia Valley
Price: $22.50       Your Price: $19.80            Quantity in Stock: 5

 

Australian Merlot

2017 Wild & Wilder The Exhibitionist Merlot Barossa Valley
Price: $18.75       Your Price: $16.50            Quantity in Stock: 4

2005 Sullivan Vineyards Reserve Merlot Rutherford Napa
Price: $130.00    Sale Price: $110.00           Quantity in Stock: 10

2014 Wirra Wirra ‘Church Block’ Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz Merlot, McLaren Vale
Price: $19.25       Your Price: $16.94            Quantity in Stock: 39