Stags Leap Winery Merlot

Description

This expressive Merlot showcases the varietals ability to excel in Napa Valley with its generous, juicy fruit flavors, intriguing baking spice notes and polished structure. Its incredibly pleasurable and complex with cherry, cranberry, pomegranate, and plum with notes of caramel and cinnamon that persist through the long finish. The wine has depth and nuance with smooth tannins and a lush, lovely texture.Tasting Notes With freshness emphasizing its southern Napa origins, the 2014 Merlot combines juicy dark cherry fruit, blueberry and light floral violet notes with subtle hints of cinnamon, vanilla, clove and cocoa, imparted from the oak ageing. The generous fruit flavors, polished structure, mouthwatering acidity, silky tannins and lush texture show just how complex and refined Merlot can be.Winemaking The grapes for this Napa Valley Merlot underwent a two- to three-week maceration period designed to extract ideal flavor, color and tannin from the skins. Using traditional winemaking techniques, Winemaker Christophe Paubert aged this Merlot in high-quality French oak barrels 35% new for 16 months. This deliberate lesser percentage of new oak imparts structure, age ability and a slight spice complexity to the wine that still allows the fresh fruit flavors to take center stage. – Stags’ Leap Winery