Sip & Savor: Hello Merlot

Hello Merlot!Hello Merlot!

“Ilike its versatility, it’s agreeable, and it’s a bit of Jack of all trades when it comes to food pairing,” commented Soren Christensen, winemaker at Hearst Ranch Winery. He was referring to merlot, a wine that has been on a roller coaster ride in the last two decades; it was up, then down, and now in recent years, on an upswing and gaining much respect.

Christensen was among a small group of Paso winemakers gathered for a merlot tasting hosted by Hearst Ranch Winery at its North River Road tasting room in Paso Robles.

The merlot winemakers and producers included Tom Myers and Craig Reed from Castoro Cellars; Josh Harp of Jada Vineyard & Winery; Sterling Kragten from Cass Winery; Laura Kramer of Kramer Estate Wines; Don Arndt of Arndt Cellars; Bill Powell of Powell Mountain Cellars; Neeta Mittal, owner of LXV and Christensen.

We were here to mark the #MerlotMe movement, which kicks off every October, culminating on November 7 as National Merlot Day. Now entering its tenth year, the movement was a brainchild of the Duckhorn family, known for its Napa Valley high-end luxury merlot.

The afternoon tasting included bottlings of 100% merlot and merlot blends from Paso’s eastside and westside; and a selection from Napa Valley, Sonoma’s Russian River, Mendocino, and from Washington State’s Walla Walla Valley.

Myers weighed in on the continuing identity of merlot, a variety commonly used in blending. Until the 1990s, merlot was not known as a varietal wine, Myers noted. “Cab was king,” he said, referring to cabernet sauvignon. “Then it [merlot] took off; it was softer, marketable, and had a broader appeal.” At Castoro, merlot planting didn’t begin till the late 1990s.

“Then we were hit by “Sideways” and took a back seat for a decade.”

Myers was referring to the multi-awardwinning film in which one damning dialogue single-handily brought merlot’s downfall.

“But we didn’t pull it out; we found a home for it,” Myers noted of the merlot planting. We tasted Castoro’s caressingly lush 2020 vintage which was 82 percent merlot blended with equal portions of petit sirah and tannat.

And what is the popularity of merlot in local tasting rooms?

“We try to present it in the tasting room if they are non-merlot fans,” commented Harp. However, the Gen-Xers are getting into it, he added. “I love the richness of it and the natural baking spice.”

Characteristics expressed in Jada’s 2019 Strayts from Willow Creek estate; a blend of 85 percent merlot co-fermented with 11 percent petite sirah and 4 percent petit verdot to give that firm tannin structure.

The 2020 Hearst Ranch was also 85 percent merlot supported by 12 percent cabernet sauvignon with traces of petit verdot and malbec adding a backbone to the wine.

“I’ve always loved merlot,” announced Sterling Kragten, winemaker at Cass Winery, admitting that he traditionally blended it with cabernet sauvignon. But for his 2018 M&M, he chose 59 percent of malbec to blend with 41 percent of merlot. “It’s soft and delicate; it’s a good marriage.” With a mere 400 annual-case production, the wine sells out fast, Kragten noted.

Don Arndt of his namesake winery also makes a small production of just 70 cases of 98 percent merlot, topped with 2 percent of a variety he admitted he couldn’t recall. Sourced from Penman Springs, the wine is a merlot lover’s dream, a rush of black cherries on the palate, framed by well rounded tannins,

The 2020 LXV was a bolt of hedonistic pleasure. The 57 percent merlot blended with 43 percent cabernet franc showed a generosity of red fruits framed by bright acidity. Kramer Estate Wines’ Laura Kramer offered the 2018 Merlot-Verdot, a plummy deep-hued 50/50 blend of merlot and petit verdot produced from her San Miguel estate in the Estrella AVA. Bill Powell of Powell Mountain Cellars Bill Powell uncorked a 2013 vintage where 46 percent of merlot was joined by malbec, petit verdot, and cabernet franc.

In addition to merlot-dominated blends, there was a good selection of 100 percent bottling. The Daou Family Estates’ 2020 Sequentis was a carousel of black cherries, cassis, and spicy currants with notes of toast oak; the limited-release wine was aged for 18 months in 50 percent new French oak.

JUSTIN’s 2019 100 percent merlot aged for 20 months in 20 percent new French oak was full-bodied and complex with classic Bordeaux characteristics of firm tannins and a rush of red fruits on the palate.

Other impressive Paso merlots included Ecluse, Barton, Austin Hope, Ancient Peaks, Pear Valley, Robert Hall, Donati Family Vineyards, and J.Lohr.

Merlot is one of the most widely planted grapes on the globe and the third leading wine purchased by Americans after cabernet sauvignon and red blends, according to The Wine Institute. So this October, give merlot a chance.

Merlot responsibly