What Is Merlot Wine
Merlot. You’ve heard of it, you’ve seen it, smelt it, drank it. But what exactly is Merlot? This is your ultimate guide to Merlot wine.
Merlot Basics
Pronounced: murr-low
Origins: Bordeaux, France
Tannin: Medium
Acidity: Medium
Age-ability: Yes
Serving temperature: 15-20°C
Introduction to Merlot
After Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot is the most popular wine in America. Most Merlot wines are soft and elegant. Known for there versatility with food pairings and easy drinking nature . It’s a very approachable grape variety. For someone who is new to wine drinking, Merlot will always be a good start to due to this easy drinking nature it has.
Merlot is one of the most widely planted grape varieties in the world. Especially in France. The Merlot popularity goes way back to 1784, When Merlot blends from the right bank of Bordeaux (A french wine growing region) started earning a reputation for growing quality Merlot grapes and blending them with Cabernet Sauvignon to make great wines. It’s believed that Bordeaux is the origins of this grape, and it was then, in the late 1700’s when Merlot was first used in wine making.
It is however, not just France who has been successful with Merlot. Italy, California, Australia, Chile and Argentina have all seen success in growing quality Merlot.
In the mid-nineteenth century, Bordeaux’s popularity had reached California. American wine-makers began growing the Merlot grape. However, instead of blending it, they made 100% Merlot wines. America really loved the softness of the wine and easy-drinking.
When grown in warmer climates, such as Australia. Merlot wines can reach 14.5% ABV, whilst cooler climates tend to tap out at 13.5% ABV.
Bordeaux and It’s Merlot Wine Blends explained
By far, the most popular and highest rated Merlot blends come from the right bank of Bordeaux. Bordeaux is a wine region in France which is divided into two sides, the left bank and the right bank. Both sides produce Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon wine blends. However, the left bank of Bordeaux wines are dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon. Whilst the right bank of Bordeaux has a higher percentage of Merlot.
It’s also good to note that Bordeaux is the largest wine region in the world, producing around 450 million bottles of wine each year!
Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon blends together perfectly. Merlot is a soft and subtle grape, often described as juicy, with flavours of chocolate and cherry. Its a crowd pleasing grape, easy drinking and suitable for all wine-lovers.
Cabernet Sauvignon on the other hand, is a older, more bold grape variety. The grape is more tannic then Merlot, meaning is drys out your mouth more then Merlot would. It’s a hearty grape, wine made with Cabernet Sauvignon can easily pair with big and rich dishes such as ribs or steak.
So, blending them together creates a harmony. Wine blends from the right bank of Bordeaux that use a higher percentage of Merlot often have that classic Merlot easy drinking nature, but with some back-bone to the wine. People often compare Merlot to a class of squash or fruit juice. Having the aggressiveness of Cabernet Sauvignon in the blend gives the wine more layers.
Blends that are more Cabernet Sauvignon heavy, such as the left bank of bordeaux, tend to have the same qualities you would imagine from a Cabernet Sauvignon, but the Merlot in the blend softens them flavours, making the wine more accessible to a larger amount of people. Not just seasoned wine professionals. The Merlot softens the tannins making for an easier drinking wine.
5 Merlot Wine Facts
Meaning behind the name. Merlot Means “little blackbird” in French
It’s so popular it has its own day. November the 7th, note it down. That’s when International Merlot Day is.
The world’s second most popular wine grape. As mentioned before, Merlot is the worlds second most popular grape. Cabernet Sauvignon being the first.
Merlot isn’t always cheap. Merlot is known widely as a cheap wine (Which doesn’t make it a bad wine by the wine) Supermarkets and local shops are well stocked up with affordable Merlot.
You may think twice about paying over £10 for a bottle of Merlot, or a Merlot dominate blend. However, it just so happens that one of the worlds most rare and expensive wine is almost entirely Merlot.
It comes from Château Pétrus in Bordeaux. Due to how expensive it is, it’s also, unfortunately, one of the worlds most counterfeited wines. Yep, if you have an expensive wine cellar and your bottle of Petrus that you spent thousands of pounds on is your most prized possession. Well, i hate to say it but theirs a high chance its fake. You might want to get that looked into.
So how much is a bottle of Château Pétrus worth? Depending on the vintage, between £2500 and £5000… Per bottle.
The academy award winning film sideways had a devastating effect on Merlot. A popular film released in 2004 named sideways, is a film staring Paul Giamatti. it’s about two middle aged men embarking on a week long road trip through California’s wine country.
Throughout the film, Pauls character has a big hatred for Merlot and a love for Pinot Noir. After the films popularity grew, Merlot seen a huge drop in sales, with more people considering it a “bad” wine, whilst Pinot Noir sales shot up and people considering it a “good” wine.
Merlot Flavour Profile
Merlot wines are known for there flavours of cherry, plum and chocolate with underlying notes of clove and vanilla.
In cooler climates the ABV percentage tends to be lower and has more of them cherry, plum and vanilla flavours. In warmer climates Merlot can be a tad more acidic and higher ABV percentage. With more fruitier cherry and blackberry flavours coming through.
Merlot Food Pairing
Merlot has a higher sugar content and lower acidity, making it perfect for a variety of food pairings. It’s without a doubt a food-friendly wine. Merlot blends from Bordeaux pair better with grilled meats, whilst 100% Merlot wines pair well with Salmon, leafy and mushroom based dishes.
