Exceptional Merlot

This isn’t normally something I write about, but I just had one of the best (reasonably priced) bottles of Merlot I’ve ever had.

My wife and I are members of a local Winery, Chateau St. Michelle… it’s a great local winery with a good selection of above-average wines, and a few stand-outs. As members, each quarter we get a couple of selections, and when we come down to pick them up we do a tasting. We also get various discounts and access to a few annual events and concerts, which is cool. Anyway, that’s not what I’m writing about.

This time around, we tasted the 8 different wines, but the clear stand-out was the 2003 Northstar Merlot, which was an order of magnitude better than any of the others. This was easily the best sub-$100 Merlot I’ve ever tasted. I’m usually not a huge fan of Merlot, but this was truly exceptional. Strong legs (almost syrupy) with strong black cherry flavors with a undercurrent of plums, and with incredible structure and a silky finish. Great stuff. The price? Around $50 or $60 per bottle, depending on where you buy it and whether you’re buying by the bottle or the case.

I strongly recommend you check it out. You won’t be disappointed.