It seems like
a long time since merlot was a trendy wine, but most wine lovers remember how
the movie Sideways ended Merlot’s
reign, and temporarily placed the more fickle – and more expensive – Pinot Noir
in it’s place for a minute or two. And although Malbec has since replaced them
both as a popular red of choice, the stigma attached to the innocent and useful
Merlot grape is still alive, whether real or imagined.
“Another Glass of Merlot?”
Even hardened
wine geeks feel it. It’s so ingrained that when I go to one of my favorite
restaurants, Arturo’s in the Village, I feel slightly paranoid ordering a Merlot, one of the best by the glass options. It goes with just about
everything, spaghetti carbonara, shrimp scampi, fried calamari, chicken
cacciatore, you name it. Nonetheless, it is with trepidation that I call the
waiter over and ask, “Can I have another glass of Merlot?” It seems like the
right time to clear up some of the misconceptions surrounding Merlot.
Origins in Bordeaux
Wine Grape Family
I
remember bringing a bottle of merlot over to my parents’ house. My father
sniffed, “Ah, Merlot! That’s a blending wine!” I knew a little about Bordeaux at the time, so I
held the peace. But it wasn’t long before I informed him that merlot may be only
50% of the blend in many Medocs, but there are quite a few Right
Bank wines, including famous St. Emilions and Pomerols that are up
to 90% Merlot.
In her
exhaustive Wine Grapes, Jancis
Robinson explains that the first noted use of the Merlot grape was in Bordeaux. The name comes
from the French for ‘blackbird,’ because apparently these hungry critters were
fond of eating the grapes right off the vines. She continues, confirming that Merlot is very widely planted, and frequently used in blending. Merlot ripens more easily than Cabernet
Sauvignon, and this is one of the reasons why it’s so important in Bordeaux. In a less than
stellar Left Bank, aka Cabernet vintage, there is still the chance for a
stellar Right Bank aka Merlot vintage, such as was reported in 1998. In fact,
generally only the upper level red wines from the Left
Bank include more than 60% Cabernet Sauvignon. A good example would be Pauillac
Chateau Duhart-Milon, an 1855 Fourth Growth, which has around 70% Cabernet Sauvignon,
with 28% Merlot and a smidgen of Cabernet Franc in the blend.
Of course, in
a vintage of the century like 2010, the tide raises all boats and both banks
prosper. For a very tasty example of a more or less fifty-fifty blend, try
Chateau Pey du Pont, a 2010 Medoc that is a beautiful example of Bordeaux’s
unique earthy quality, while including ripe black and red fruits and enough
structure to age and soften for a few years at least. The blend is 50% Merlot,
45% Cabernet, and 5% Cabernet Franc.
Tough Enough for a New York
Summer
Speaking of
Merlot’s ability to age, another time, I went over to my Aunt Jane’s apartment
for dinner and she asked me to pick a wine from a bunch of bottles that had
been given to her over the previous couple of years. I spied a bottle of
Kendall Jackson Merlot 2005 and decided to pull the cork. Now, we are talking
about a six-year-old bottle of wine that had been “stored” in an Upper West
Side kitchen through several brutal New
York summers and plenty of steam heat in the winter,
too. The wine was lovely! A mature red with soft, red and black fruit flavors
that went well with a number of delicious meat, fish and vegetable dishes. An
impressive feat of resilience and perseverance!
Further Adventures with Merlot
Speaking of
Merlot’s flexibility, I once finished a difficult song that I had been writing
on Merlot. I had the bridge from another song I had been trying to get across
with an earlier band – a bridge which was not dissimilar from ‘Don’t Fear the
Reaper.’ It worked perfectly as the chorus in the new song, however. I have
Pepperwood Grove Merlot to thank for that. Imagine going from the bridge to the
chorus? From stepchild to star!
And let’s not
forget our first example of Merlot’s curious dance in the spotlight. Towards
the end of Sideways, when the Paul
Giammatti character seems to be completely defeated, he hunkers down with some
sliders, sneaking sips from his most cherished bottle, 1961 Cheval Blanc. The blend? About 40% Merlot, with the rest
Cabernet Franc.
Staff Pick: Benziger Sonoma Merlot 2011
Opaque purple.
Black currants, cherries and oak on the nose – enticing nose. Good, dry finish
and balance. A hint of jolly rancher. Tannins on the finish. Fairly soft in the
mouth. Medium full body. Smoke and pepper in the finish. Solid, substantial and
tasty wine. Chunky and delicious. –Christian
Botta