2009 Merlot (Sold Out)

Tasting Notes

This wine offers a soft and opulent entry into the palate with dark berry flavors of blueberry compote, blackberry jam, boysenberry pastry, and mulberry. Notes of violets, tobacco, cocoa, cedar and leather are also present. The firm tannins provide a tactile yet velvety texture that lingers on the finish.

Ratings

Stephen Tanzer, Vinous (May 2012) 90 points
“Bright dark red. Sexy aromas of black raspberry, plum, milk chocolate, truffle and loamy earth. Silky on entry, then full but not heavy in the middle, with a fine-grained texture to the flavors of red fruits, licorice, tobacco and earth. Finishes with broad, serious, dusty tannins and very good length. An attractive soil-driven merlot with little in the way of easy sweetness.”

Vineyard Notes

Seavey’s 16th vintage of estate-produced Merlot, the 2009, was made from grapes that came from vines located in several different blocks of the south-facing hillside vineyard. The growing season on our southern facing hillside vineyard was particularly long and allowed our grapes to mature without rush.

Production Notes

Winemaking style followed classic Bordeaux methods, beginning with whole-berry fermentation, cold soak and native yeast to start fermentation. The wine was aged in French oak barrels (50% new oak) for 18 months before bottling in June 2011.

100% ESTATE GROWN, PRODUCED & BOTTLED, NAPA VALLEY AVA