Our Wines
At R. Merlo Estate Vineyards, the particular characteristics of our Hyampom Valley vineyards are carried through to the bottle. Our vineyards have allowed us to make an array of richly flavored and expressive wines, all true to varietal character and true to the land from which they come.
Unlike most California wines, these deep, complex wines are not high in alcohol, nor overripe in flavors. Rather, the red wines reveal rich flavor themes with very large, bold, yet smooth tannin structure. The phenomenal skin structure of the fruit results in opulent, dark colors, practically impenetrable by light. The white wines display bright vibrant flavors with crisp natural acidity.
R. Merlo Estate Vineyards produces unique varietal wines, all showing the extraordinary terroir of Hyampom Valley.
About Filtration and Sediments
When opening a bottle of our wine, you may find a small amount of sediment on the cork. This is normal because we do not filter, or only lightly filter our wines. The reasons for this are because filtering of wines takes away from the character and structure. We are very traditional in this sense. Our wines are allowed to develop after bottling for a number of years and that is why the wines will change when allowed to 'breath' after opening. The Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Zinfandel will have this sediment characteristic more than other varietals.
Wine filtration, and to a lesser extent fining, remain subjects of controversy among winemakers. There is the school that argues filtration is always necessary for stability in the bottle. The other side argues that a carefully made wine, red wine in particular, which has gone through barrel aging, should not need filtration, either early or before bottling.
Professor Dinsmoor Webb of UC Davis wrote: "Filtration of fine wine is a controversial issue. While it may be necessary for ordinary commercial wines, too heavy a filtration can indeed rob a fine wine of some of its complexity and capacity to age." On the subject of fining, Webb wrote: "Most young wines, if left long enough under good conditions, would eventually reach the same state of clarity as fining can achieve within months."
At R. Merlo Estate Vineyards, we make wines in the classic style. David Georges, our Head Winemaker and Viticulturist, earned his B.S. Degree in Viticulture / Enology from U.C. Davis in 1998. David believes that unfiltered or lightly filtered wines retain the characters of the wine, keeping the tannins and flavors from being extracted in the filtration process. It is uncommon to find unfiltered wines in the price ranges we are selling our wines for, and are usually limited to more expensive wines.
David suggests that you handle a bottle very gently in order to not disturb any sediments. If the bottle is stored cork down, the way we store our bottles, he suggests you stand the bottle up for a day if this is convenient. It is very common to see sediment attached to the bottom of the cork, and does not indicate any problems with the wine.
Our Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, and Zinfandel are unfiltered, while our Merlot, Sangiovese, and Pinot Noir are lightly filtered.
Current Releases
The following wines are our current releases. You will find more descriptive information about these and our library wines in our online wine store.
2005 Cabernet Sauvignon
The Oak Knoll District of Napa Valley is famed for growing grapes with deep dark fruit flavors and silky complex tannin structures. We contracted our Cabernet Sauvignon fruit from a vineyard nestled at the cooler base of the Mount Veeder foothills thus sustaining ample black cherries, black currant fruit flavors complimented by a complexity of anise, old growth forest duff, raw leather, sage, light roasted Kona coffee and a background aroma of fresh Spring rain with a buttery vanilla oak finish.
This was a consistently cooler growing season with a long hang time that allowed full ripening without rushing the sugar levels (hence not high alcohol). Thus we achieved full varietal and fruit characters of good balance and layers of complexity. The natural acidity of this calm season gave this wine a good backbone of acid that enables long ageability for those with patience.
Serve with black peppered and smoked Margret duck breast, chicken apple sausage stuffed tortellini, and a Waldorf salad. Dessert of dark forest chocolate cake and black Sumatra espresso finish off this expressive meal.
2007 Syrah
This big and richly dark wine has a refined balance and an elegant nature. Further description coming.
2006 Pinot Noir
This wine has a dark rich garnet color and aromas of Bin cherries and lilacs. Fruit flavors of concentrated red currants and simpler fresh plums are well integrated due to the secure background of subtle new oak and minerals.
The winter leading into the 2006 season was extremely wet, causing a landslide just beyond the vineyard’s boundary. This landslide in turn diverted one of the seasonal creeks that run through the vineyard bringing extra water as well as new silt which provided additional fertilization to the vines. The water and fertilizer stored in the soil over the winter made our vines very vigorous in the spring, leading into a warm and dry summer season, giving the fruit an almost magical quality. This well balanced large crop of 2006 produced grapes that were richer and had more pronounced color.
Serve with grilled cedar planked salmon and tarragon accompanied with asparagus, shallots, and portabella mushroom risotto sprinkled with Parmesan cheese and a dessert of strawberry chiffon pie.
2007 Zinfandel
This dark full-bodied wine has complex mingled aromas and flavors of fresh raspberries and loganberries along with a medley of dried blackberries and blueberries. A background of spicy oak and espresso heightens this wine's fruit complexity.
We recommend serving with roasted lamb shank marinated with this Zinfandel and drizzled with raspberry reductions sauce with rice pilaf and a dessert of German chocolate cheesecake.
Awards and Accolades
- 2010 San Francisco Wine Competition
- 2007 Syrah, Bronze
- 2009 Los Angeles International Wine and Spirits Competition
- 2005 Pinot Noir, Gold - Best of Class
- 2005 Syrah, Gold
- 2009 Vineyard and Winery Management Magazine's Grand Harvest Awards
- 2004 Syrah, Silver
- 2009 California Zinfandel Championship
- 2004 Zinfandel, Bronze
- 2008 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition
- 2005 Pinot Noir, Bronze
- 2004 Cabernet Sauvignon Oak Knoll Napa Valley, Bronze
- 2006 California State Fair
- 2001 Cabernet Sauvignon, Bronze
- 2006 Los Angeles County Fair Wines of the World Competition
- 2002 Merlot, Silver
- 2006 West Coast Wine Competition
- 2003 Syrah, Silver
- 2006 San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition
- 2002 Merlot, Bronze
- 2003 Syrah, Bronze
- 2003 Pinot Noir Dijon, Bronze
- 2005 Florida International Wine Challenge
- 2001 Sangiovese, Bronze
- 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon, Bronze
- 2005 Los Angeles County Fair Wines of the World Competition
- 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon, Silver
- 2000 Cabernet Sauvignon, Silver
- 2005 Los Angeles County Fair Wines of the World Competition - Limited Production
- 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon, Bronze
- 2005 California State Fair
- 1999 Cabernet Sauvignon, Silver
- 2001 Sangiovese, Bronze
- 2001 Merlot, Bronze
- 2004 California State Fair
- 2001 Sangiovese, Bronze
Product Sheets
Please click on the links below for information about any of our available wines.
