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Merlot and Pinot Noir
We feature one of each today
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Greetings!
No grape has experienced such tremendous growth in recent times as much as Pinot Noir. Growth in popularity and growth in acres planted; growth in sales and growth in prices. Unfortunately, this has all come at the expense of Merlot. A side-effect of all of this is that is becoming more and more challenging for us to find great Pinot Noir at a fair price, as well as top-quality Merlot at any price. This week's newsletter features two that fit the bill. Check 'em both out below.
Friday night's tasting takes us down South. We're talking WAY down South. We''ll mostly pour wines from Argentina, with one from Chile. Come taste six wines for TEN BUCKS. Line-up here.
Sunday Happy Hours have been a lot of fun lately, and this week's is perhaps the best one yet. From 3-7pm, we are pouring three top-tier Red Burgundies from the stellar 2009 vintage. Two of them are Premier Cru! $10/tasting. Check out the wines here.
Take me home, country roads. Chris & Dan
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CHRIS' WINE OF THE WEEK:
CAMPION Pinot Noir
Santa Lucia Highlands 2007
$28/bottle, $302/case
Wow, a Pinot Noir that was NOT rushed to market and is not over-priced. It's been quite some time since I have been able to say that!
The Santa Lucia Highlands AVA is know for growing top-notch Pinot Noir grapes. Located about 25 miles inland off of the Monterey Coast, the "SLH" experiences cool morning breezes and fog from the Monterey Bay and basks in warm afternoons thanks to direct southern exposures to the sun. This is Pinot Noir country. Campion's SLH Pinot Noir is a great example of the region. It's not too big, it's wildly aromatic with lots of dark red cherries, rose petals and berries, and it's spicy. And while this Pinot Noir has plenty of rich fruit, there is plenty of acidity to keep it light and fresh, and there's enough earth to keep it from being a fruit bomb.
This may be the best value Pinot Noir I have tasted this year. Yep, I said it.
DAN'S WINE OF THE WEEK:
SWITCHBACK RIDGE Merlot
"Peterson Family Vineyard" Napa Valley 2009 $58/bottle
Chris pulled me away from my Olympic Club hole-by-hole breakdown (U.S. Open in San Francisco this week) to submit my wine recommendation.
It comes with a story. During Year #1 of Back Room Wines, 2002, my roommate brought home a bottle of Switchback Ridge Merlot 1998, the inaugural vintage. Owner Kelly Peterson is a friend of hers and thought it might be a good fit for this new wine shop in Napa. That wine was memorably good and I ordered right away. Shortly thereafter Robert Parker went crazy for ALL their wines. I was on the inside track, and to this day Back Room gets a good allocation. I remember the first few vintages it was a quintessential "Back Room Wine," with requests exceeding supply ten times over! Those were the days...
The Switchback "cultness" is gone, but the quality stays the same. Price hasn't really changed either. It's been sold in the mid to high $50s since 2002. Today's featured wine, the 2009 Switchback Ridge Merlot, is a fine value.
The "Peterson Family Vineyard" is north of St Helena and just east of the Silverado Trail in Dutch Henry Canyon. Robert Foley, one of Napa's best at making dark, rich and supple wines, has been the Switchback winemaker since the beginning.
Big Napa Cabernet lovers like Switchback Ridge Merlot a lot. It's opulent, lush, dark, very rich and very smooth. Time in oak gives vanilla, toast, espresso & sweet spice overtones. Sweet berry and black cherry flavors all over the place. Boasts excellent texture and extraction, remindful of a particularly smooth Oakville Cabernet. Drinking this wine makes me want to eat a slab of smoked prime rib with horseradish sauce.
You can also reply to this email with your order,
call us, toll-free, at 877-322-2576, or come on in. We love to see you in the shop.
Thank you!
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The Joys of Aged Cabernet Sauvignon
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Marissa and I don't have an extensive wine cellar, but we do have some gems. Recently we opened a 2001 Cabernet from a very reputable Napa producer. The wine immediately reminded us exactly WHY it pays to be patient (at least from time to time). It was still very rich and full of fruit, but all of the rough edges and tannins had seemingly melted away. It was a decadent experience to say the least.
Dan and I sell very few older wines, but there are a few hiding in the back. Check out the "Search Inventory" page and browse by vintage sometime. You might just find a gem of your own! Have you opened any older vintages lately?
Drink more Inzolia.Chris & Dan
Daniel Dawson, Chris Foster Back Room Wines Corner of First & Main Streets (First Street Entrance) Downtown Napa, California 94559 Phone: (707) 226-1378 Toll Free # is 877-322-2576
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