Cheap merlots

At those prices, why not just sample one of each? I bought a very cheap merlot last winter to make beef stew with, but when I sipped some, it was actually decent. It was Pepperwood something, about $5 a bottle.

Susan

I've never had the Pepperwood [Grove] Merlot, but they have done some pretty fair "value priced" Zins.

As to trying each - probably the best idea. While Hogue is a good producer of wines, most OR/WA Cabs and Merlots are a bit austere, with under-ripe fruit coming through. However, that style probably appeals to many, so it is not * bad* only one that I seem to appreciate less.

Do yourself a favor and, for a special occasion, do splurge for a more expensive Merlot. While not a favorite varietal of mine (domestic and non- Pomerol Merlots), wine makers like Dan Duckhorn do a wonderful wine. Joseph Phelps Napa Merlot is a few US$ down the price scale, but also very nice. You might not find spending 3x the Trader Joe's price worth the expense, but at least you will sample some good ones. BTW Costco in Phoenix, AZ, often has the J Phelps for ~US$25.

As for the Blackstone, I've had several of their wines at tastings, and was quite unimpressed. Since, I usually bypass their table, but you have to remember that preferences in wine is VERY personal. There is no right, no wrong, only what YOU like.

Hunt

I had a pretty good 2002 Sebastiani for $10.99.

Dimitri

Hunt, why do you think OR/WA Cabs and Merlots are under ripe. Do you assume the Pacific NW is too cool and wet to ripen Bordeaux varieties? Most Northwest-grown Bordeaux grapes -- as well as Rhone and Italian -- are grown in the semi-desert east of the Cascades. They get plenty ripe and the wines are everything except austere. It is a different situation west of the mountains -- that's Pinot/Chard/Riesling country.

Andy

Hunt, why do you think OR/WA Cabs and Merlots are under ripe. Do you assume the Pacific NW is too cool and wet to ripen Bordeaux varieties? Most Northwest-grown Bordeaux grapes -- as well as Rhone and Italian -- are grown in the semi-desert east of the Cascades. They get plenty ripe and the wines are everything except austere. It is a different situation west of the mountains -- that's Pinot/Chard/Riesling country.

Andy

Salut/Hi Hunt,

le/on 31 Jul 2005 23:44:56 GMT, tu disais/you said:-

Eh?? That's not what I found when visiting Walla walla. Sorry. The Merlots were fully ripe. Can't speak for Oregon cabs, as I was tasting Pinot Noir and Chardonnay there. I know it's not really politically correct in the USA to equate an area with a cepage - that's what those peculiar French do, but it seems to me to be perverse to grow Cab in a perfect PN area.

Andy,

What I have found in many of the Merlot samples tasted from WA/OR was a lot of herbaceous and vegetal tones, that I did not like. I would liken these to the elements from Monterey Cabs from the 70's through early 90's. Most of the fruit character was lacking, or very weak, and it seemed that when the winemakers went for more extraction, the tannins got quite rough. The tastes that I found were reminiscent of under-ripe fruit, though the cause could certainly have been something else.

When I drink a Merlot, I'm looking for good fruit character and soft, velvety tannins. I have found scant few of these from that area. Do they exist? I would hope so. Have I experienced any? No. Have I tried all of the producer's products? Not even close. Since I don't gravitate to Merlot as a varietal, it's not a wine that I'll sit down, line up a dozen, and taste over an evening. Have I tried quite a few? Yes, at both trade tastings and social events, where the wine was being poured. Am I missing something, or is it just

One problem that I find with most Merlots is that many producers rushed to get quantities of the wine on the market, and it seemed, to me at least, that they did not put their best efforts into the product. This is a worldwide phenomena, and is not solely reflective of WA/OR. I find that the majority are just not wines that I enjoy.

Are there producers, who ripen the grapes adequately, craft wonderful wines from them, that reflect the character of the grape? I believe that there have to be, but I have not found a single one, that I really, really enjoy. The same cannot be said for some of the CA producers. Duckhorn, Joseph Phelps, Beringer Howell Mountain, Dunn, and several others have knocked my socks off. The same can be said for a handful of Pomerol producers, though I have to question whether I could ever afford a Le Pin, or Pétrus on my wine budget. I notice that the ‘00 Ch. Le Pin is fetching ~US$2000/btl.

Whether it is growing conditions, the winemaker's decisions on harvest, or style, or a corporate rush to sell lots of wine, I have not encountered any Merlot "winners" from WA/OR. I hope that both you and Ian will prove me wrong. If I have to eat crow, then what better accompaniment, than a great, fruit- driven WA/OR Merlot! The only requisite is that the wine is available in the AZ/US area. I'll gladly hold a tasting and publish the results. For the sake of my budget, please keep the recommendations to about 12, regardless of price

- save for the Le Pins, please.

As a side note: today is Food & Drink day in the local newspaper. As it happens, Mark Tarbell, a local restauranteur and wine writer, who studied both extensively in France, listed a WA Merlot in his "On Wine" column, named, "A night of tasting yields 7 WINNERS." [Caps mine] He rates the ‘02 14 Hands Merlot as one of the winners, and scored it 90 pts on his rating scale. This is a value-priced Merlot at US$11-15. I will have to give this one a shot, especially for the sake of my defense of recent statements. However, he goes on to state: "The aroma is sexy, deep, and nicely wooded, with a little mint, and herbal in the finish." (© Mark Tarbell/Arizona Republic) For me, "herbal" is good, where "herbaceous" is not so good, though they can be deemed close on the nose, or in the mouth. I have found far too much "herbaceous" in the Merlots that I have tasted from WA/OR.

I hope to be proved wrong by your and Ian's suggestions. There is little more fun, than a tasting with a purpose. I'd also like to have some good examples of Merlot, especially from WA/OR in the cellar.

Thank you both for your comments.

Hunt

Hello Ian,

Well, you're not alone. AyTee also took me to task on this one. For reference, please see my response to that article in this thread. Please give me some references to the Walla Walla Merlots, as I don't think I saved your TN's from that trip.

Thanks for the comments, Hunt

Hunt,

Sorry about yesterday's double post. I must have been over-caffienated.

For decent inexpensive Washington Merlot, I like Columbia Crest and Ch. Ste. Michelle (Joel's experience notwithstanding). I have enjoyed some vintages of Preston too, but haven't tasted any recent ones. Also Barnard Griffin, Bookwalter, Hedges. Try Reininger, Buty, Tamarack, Russel Creek, Dunham, Colvin, Leonetti if you can make the down-payment, Walla Walla Vintners, Northstar. These last are all Walla Walla wineries (and tend to be pricey), although all except Reininger source fruit elsewhere in the Columbia Valley AVA as well.

I don't know whether any of the above will knock your socks off, but all are good to my taste, and some very good. Reading your note about "herbaceous" leads me to suspect that our tastes are in fact different. I actually like a little hay, green pepper, even green bean if not too much, in the mix. But I associate that with WA Cab franc and Carmenere (Tamarack, Reininger, and Colvin make wonderful examples) rather than with the Merlots listed above.

As for Oregon, I don't know of any Merlot being grown in the Willamette Valley, the state's best-known appellation. It would indeed be difficult to ripen here. (I recently moved from Walla Walla to Corvallis.) Merlot and other Bordeaux varieties are grown in southern OR in the Rogue Valley, Umpqua Valley and Apple Valley AVAs, but I'm not familiar with them -- yet. Fun indeed.

By the way, (trivia alert!) a couple of the "Washington" AVAs actually overlap into Oregon a bit. Seven Hills for example, one of Walla Walla's longest established and well respected vineyards, is actually in the Oregon portion of the WW AVA.

You Wrote: "Mark Tarbell...rates the '02 14 Hands Merlot as one of the winners, and scored it 90 pts on his rating scale. This is a value-priced Merlot at US$11-15. I will have to give this one a shot, ..."

Me too. I hadn't heard of it.

Cheers.

Andy

Thanks for the recommendations. I've had the CCrest, the Ch Ste. Michelle ( though I believe that they do several, as of late and I've not tried them all ), and the Bookwalter. None has left a favorable impression on me. I did like the Bookwalter Chenin Blanc, however, for an inexpensive quaffer.

In the right wine, I find "herbal" notes to be positive. As stated in an earlier thread, the jalapeno pepper in the Sanford SB from about '97, or '98, was real turnon. The same can be said for straw/hay/mown grass in SB's from around the globe. I love the "black" pepper in many Zins, Syrahs, and some Cabs. The elements that I had found in the Merlots in question were along the "green bean" line, and were not to my liking.

Thanks for the recommendations. Between you and Mark Tarbell, I've got some drinking to do. TN's to follow.

Hunts

Salut/Hi Hunt,

In haste - as this is a frantic time of year for me.

le/on 3 Aug 2005 14:59:23 GMT, tu disais/you said:-

I don't think I sent them as they weren't very coherent - most of them.

However here are just a few wineries where I was extremely impressed - in no kind of order.

Dunham, Woodward Canyon, K, Cayuse, Pepperbridge Winery, Tamarack (esp their reasonably priced Firehouse Road).

To be fair, I wasn't necessarily most excited by the Merlots from all these. For example, the 'K' vintners "En Cerise" '02 with 80% Cab and 20% Syrah, got a one word TN "Awesome".

Must stop, but you should try to plan a trip there yourself, with a week in Walla-walla and a week in Willamette.

That's in accord with my own experiences. While I should probably recuse myself as a non-fan of most New World Merlots, I've found that the Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon from the Walla Walla area tend to be the most interesting to me.

Mark Lipton