This wine is a rich, ruby color in the glass, just as you would expect from a nice Merlot. The nose is very interesting, with a distinct sweetness, almost sugary scent of kid's breakfast cereal, maybe Frankenberry is what I'm smelling...hmmm... I guess that would technically be strawberry then! Along with the sweet fruit are hints of leather, charcoal, and spice, perhaps anise. Despite the expectations of Frankenberry, the wine itself is quite dry, with just a bit of fruit on the front end, some nice ripe plum midpalate, and then the tight tannins make for a long, smooth finish. The wine still seems fairly young, so it might do well in the bottle for a few more years before really hitting its stride, but still it's drinking very nicely right now.
Overall, I would rate this wine a solid 8, with definite room to advance as the wine matures. Tonight I've paired it with a lovely rare Angus ribeye served with some fresh scapes, purple carrots and golden beets grilled in olive oil and a wonderfully cool Caprese salad for the joy of summer dining. The nice tannic finish of the wine plays so wonderfully on the richness of the grilled root vegetables, I can't think of a better overall meal for the third evening of summer!
No comments:
Post a Comment