Region: Napa Valley, CA
I can’t pick anything up from the nose of this merlot, but I’m not complaining. It’s a delicious wine. It’s thin-bodied, very smooth, and just to the right of dry. The prominent berry flavors are present in equal parts of cherry, raspberry, and strawberry like a fruit punch blend. A mellow cocoa accents the berry bounty, helping it all glide down more easily. Small traces of leather and spice round out the glass.
This is definitely a merlot worth trying. I may just keep a few around.
Other Bloggers' Thoughts:
Cheap Wine Finder on the 2007 vintage
The color is a see-thru, shiny cherry red. The nose is interesting, some cigar box, a bit of leather, blackberry, plum and smoky bacon fat; I was not expecting that from a $4.99 wine. This a nice, chewy Merlot, not fruit forward like the majority of wine in this price range. There is blackberry and raspberry, vanilla, along with a harder edge of tobacco and Christmas spice. There is a decent is berry and vanilla finish.
Well, I wasn’t expecting a 5 buck Napa Merlot is be a real Napa Merlot. I am sure there are better Napa Merlot’s out there, but the Napa River at 1/10 the price is a solid effort.
Reviewed 10 Jan 12.
