Contemporary Merlot trends?

Quo vadis, Merlot?

Despite my heavy preference for viniferas like Pinotage and Tannat, I do enjoy a velvety/plush Merlot now and then - so long as it's chiselled and lithe rather than über-ripe and searingly alcoholic. I even think that if I lived in a climate where winter kill wasn't an issue, I might even be tempted to plant a few vines of it in my backyard vineyard.

I try to avoid the goopy/high-rs/high-alcohol/confected types from the New World. That said, a well balanced, chalky, dusty and violetty Merlot is still a nice wine. Which brings me to my question:

What are the contemporary stylistic trends in varietal Merlot nowadays, especially outside Bordeaux and St-Emilion? Has any re-thinking or re-strategizing taken place since the Sideways phenomenon that supposedly saw Merlot sales take a dive?

I try to avoid the goopy/high-rs/high-alcohol/confected types from the New World. That said, a well balanced, chalky, dusty and violetty Merlot is still a nice wine. Which brings me to my question:

Paul,
Your statement "goopy/high-rs/high-alcohol/confected types" makes me think 'cheap', not New World. It also makes me thnk the grape might be being grown where it really is too hot for it. How many different 'New World' sites have you actually tasted to make you draw this conclusion about Merlot?
Regards,
Sue

Not much of a trend in the sense of what you are looking for but Virginia is finding that Merlot actually does fairly well there. The signature wine from Barboursville (octagon) is a merlot based blend which always shows well. Last fall I was talking with Jim Law at Linden about merlot and the perceived problems with rot of merlot on the east coast and he tells me he has not experienced those problems, that the fruit quality is very good and that he is planting substantially more merlot as a result.

Sue..I drank a merlot from a well respected California winery last night that was goopy,etc,...really over extracted..If I hadn't looked at the label,wd not have had a clue re what I was drinking..and it was not a cheap wine..I didn't write down the viintage but it was a merlot from Selene..It was poured at a tasting that my wife and I attended at a local store last night..

Sue, Jon beat me to it ... I was just going to say that most of the Californian ones I've had tasted that way.

But yes, New World also includes Virginia (which I have tasted - at Niagara Cool) and Ontario, which does Merlot well in good years and when the vines actually survive all the climatic woes stacked against them.

Sue, Jon beat me to it ... I was just going to say that most of the Californian ones I've had tasted that way.

But yes, New World also includes Virginia (which I have tasted - at Niagara Cool) and Ontario, which does Merlot well in good years and when the vines actually survive all the climatic woes stacked against them.

Aha! 'New World' also includes Chile and New Zealand - both where there are some very stellar merlots being produced.

I really think of all the reports I had read of California merlot, that perhaps in a large majority of cases the grapes are 'overripe' before they are picked. There are always exceptions, of course. California seems to me to be a fairly warm/hot climate. Bordeaux is much, much cooler. BTW, I think I tasted a decent Okanagan merlot many years ago.

Cheers,
Sue

Ah...don't damn ALL California Merlots

Selene is, I believe, one of them that infamous "Cult" wineries. Mia Klein has worked for wineries like DalleValle and Etude which tend to the "goopy," in my limited experience....

Try Clos Du Val. for $23, I was impressed. Not goopy at all. Or, a Carneros melot like Adastra, which is almost bitter in its herbaceousness.

Aha! 'New World' also includes Chile and New Zealand - both where there are some very stellar merlots being produced.

Sue, who in your estimation are making steller Merlots in NZ? I'd presume that most if not all are in Hawke's Bay/Waiheke Island, but my experience with the variety there doesn't extend much beyond Te Mata(my top), Esk Valley (also v. good), Matariki and CJ Pask.

Mark Lipton

Aha! 'New World' also includes Chile and New Zealand - both where there are some very stellar merlots being produced.

Sue, who in your estimation are making steller Merlots in NZ? I'd presume that most if not all are in Hawke's Bay/Waiheke Island, but my experience with the variety there doesn't extend much beyond Te Mata(my top), Esk Valley (also v. good), Matariki and CJ Pask.

Mark Lipton

Of the 100% Merlot wines, Craggy Range was my favourite producer last year although I have not tasted their current 2006 vintage releases. Two wines in particular - Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Merlot 2005 and Craggy Range Sophia 2005.

Also Ti Point One Merlot 2005 from Matakana, north of Auckland.
I have a Villa Maria Omahu Gravels Merlot 2006 (Hawkes Bay fruit)here to taste and I imagine this will also be very good.

Not that many 100% merlots here really. Most are merlot dominant blends.

I really don't buy a lot of Merlot, but it is oddly satisfying at times . Some of my favorite Merlot comes from Ticino in southern Switzerland. Serious stuff indeed. Check out Guido Brivio (certainly not available stateside.) For North America, I really like some of the wines in WA. The sites on Red Mountain might be a little warm in some vintages, but there are good wines to be found. Italy makes its share of decent Merlot from the blockbuster Tuscans (Petrolo) to the pleasant little wines from Umbria and the Veneto. St. Emilion is still my benchmark ('cept for '05!)

Bill

Paul, Knapp Winery in the FL makes a very nice Merlot that I think would meet your criteria. They usually flesh it out with LI grapes, but the wine is definitely not goppy.

I liked the original poster's comment "...I try to avoid the goopy/high-rs/high-alcohol/confected types from the New World. That said, a well balanced, chalky, dusty and violetty Merlot is still a nice wine...." .

I'm finding myself agreeing with the writer's intent and realizing also that many old world merlot (St Emilion, Pomerol) now stomp this goopy high-alcohol ground too. Not a trend I'm like to see so I just buy different things now. What a difference there is in style between vintages of say 1990-and before compared to current releases.

For domestic merlot that has shows balance of fruit, structure and a more old-fashioned typicity, I've enjoyed many Andrew Will releases, though I have to add that I've bought no merlot since the 2000 vintage.

Of the 100% Merlot wines, Craggy Range was my favourite producer last year although I have not tasted their current 2006 vintage releases. Two wines in particular - Craggy Range Gimblett Gravels Merlot 2005 and Craggy Range Sophia 2005.

Also Ti Point One Merlot 2005 from Matakana, north of Auckland.
I have a Villa Maria Omahu Gravels Merlot 2006 (Hawkes Bay fruit)here to taste and I imagine this will also be very good.

Not that many 100% merlots here really. Most are merlot dominant blends.

Thanks, Sue. I'll keep an eye out for the Craggy Ranges, a name that I've heard before. I know what you mean about the blends: Te Mata's Awatera was my standout wine (and I didn't even get a chance to try the Coleraine) and Esk Valley's was blended, too, IIRC.

Mark Lipton

Has any re-thinking or re-strategizing taken place since the Sideways phenomenon that supposedly saw Merlot sales take a dive?

There was nothing "supposed" about it. Merlot sales have gone way down. Our American Merlot section is a fraction of the size it used to be. And it wasn't all the fault of the movie: Merlot was hugely popular in the late '80s and '90s, and a lot of vines were planted in places they shouldn't have. And quality went down.

In other parts of the world, of course, the story is different. I haven't noticed any slack in demand for Petrus! And we've seen some Merlot from some unlikely places (Sicily, for example) that are turning out fairly-priced wines that have at least a bit of that wonderful violet nose that made people love Merlot in the first place.