Amour Merlot

Amour is a limited production single-varietal Merlot wine from our ry Creek Valley Estate vineyard.


  • Serving Temperature: 60°F- 65°F
  • Glass Type: Riedel - Bordeaux
  • Decant: Yes – 30 to 50 minutes
  • Age: Up to 15+ years

Always barrel-aged in French oak and produced as a pure Merlot it showcases our vineyard and our winemaking. The fact that it won gold medals in major competition is also a nice accomplishment, underlining this wine’s quality and value.

Amour ~ A French word meaning "love" because everyone loves this unique, single-vineyard, pure Merlot and to honor Cecile, our original French wine making mentor.

Merlot ~ roughly translates to little blackbird, possibly due to its dark blue-black color having first been mentioned in print in 1783, spelled Merlau described as making “a black and excellent wine, productive in good soil.”

Pronunciation: mer-loh

Correct terroir, everything that influences the place where grapes grow, is vital to grow great Merlot and in our home estate vineyards we have been quietly growing and bottling a dazzling Merlot.

Soil profiles, prepared in March, 1990 showed 110” of loam and silty loam and 100” of loam and sandy loam across the vineyard profile resulting in a Sandy loam with 63% sand, 5% silt, and 32% clay produced from degraded limestone.

Clay soils contain a high Citation Exchange Capacity enabling the soil to provide more nutrients to the vines adding complexity and unique attributes to the grape flavor profile. Our soil chemistry profile proved to be very similar to that found in the appellation of Pomerol in Bordeaux, France, an area famous for growing the world's greatest Merlot.

Starting with the highly regarded Pétrus Clone 181 of Merlot from Pomerol our vines are planted in this rich, clay-loam over gravel soils which retain their humidity in summer, considered perfect for Merlot.

Clone 181, prone to early bud break, is fairly vigorous producing pendulous fruit clusters. The spherical, blue-black, medium size berries show a reasonable thickness of skin, a juicy pulp and a wonderful rich, opulent flavor.

Amour Merlot Grapes

North of Bordeaux's Gironde River, the “Right Bank”, Merlot historically is the basis of the wines of the St. Emilion and Pomerol appellations. Merlot is the jewel here with Château Pétrus and Château Le Pin, leaders in Bordeaux wines, over 90% Merlot.

At the Paris Exhibition of 1878, Pomerol’s Château Pétrus was awarded its first gold medal, an event of great consequence, establishing the first wine of Pomerol to achieve this exalted position.

In like fashion our Amour Merlot has won double gold medal (unanimous judge's decision) in the largest competition of American wines in the world.

Reds in Harvest

Beef Borscht

Beef Borscht

Borscht is one of those dishes that has dozens of variations. This version of the classic Russian dish uses lots of meat, vegetables and a touch of Herbie's spices for extra flavor.

Braised Short Ribs with Fennel, Parmesan & Thyme Polenta

Braised Short Ribs with Fennel, Parmesan & Thyme Polenta

This recipe makes delicious short ribs with carrots and onion served over polenta flavoured with fresh thyme. Since short ribs will reduce with fat the dish can be cooked and placed in the fridge overnight. The next day skim off the fat, reheat and enjoy with Amour Merlot or Clarissa Vin Rouge.

Chocolate Lava Cake

Chocolate Lava Cake

Every restaurant in America offers a version of this amazing supremely rich and chocolaty cake created by master chef Jean-Georges Vongerichten - here's our version from our own Chef Emma Del Monte!

Flourless Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Flourless Chocolate Cake with Vanilla Buttercream Frosting

Flourless Chocolate Cake alone is rich and decadent and completely chocolaty, but it is somehow made even better with the addition of vanilla buttercream frosting all of which comes even more alive with the addition of Amour Merlot.

French Onion Soup

French Onion Soup

This French Onion Soup recipe has an amazing depth of flavor and is really good for you. Onions have both anti-inflammatory and anti-viral properties so they can boost your body’s immune defenses.

Leg of Lamb with Garlic Rub

Leg of Lamb with Garlic Rub

A leg of lamb refers to the whole hind leg of a young sheep that is less than one year old. In general, the darker the colour, the older the animal. Baby lamb meat will be pale pink, while regular lamb is pinkish-red. For this recipe it can be either bone-in or boneless (with the bones removed).

Macadamia & Coffee Rocky Road

Macadamia & Coffee Rocky Road

This Australian recipe has graced family tables for many occasions since 1853. This unique, delicious combination of chocolate and nuts was created by Executive Chef, Dan of The Louise Hotel in Barossa Valley. An awful lot of taste testing went into getting this right!

Mole Poblano Carnitas

Mole Poblano Carnitas

Mole Poblano is a traditional Mexican dish that highlights the subtle flavors of chicken or pork with cocoa and mild Mexican spices. With the addition of 60% cocoa chocolate this recipe is a perfect pairing for our Amour Merlot.

Rack of Lamb with Pea, Potato and Tarragon Salad

Rack of Lamb with Pea, Potato and Tarragon Salad

This dish bursts with the spring flavors of fresh vegetables and tender lamb, embellished very simply with fresh Tarragon that gives this dish its goodness. Tarragon is so often overlooked in the world of herbs, but its taste is so distinct and interesting. It has subtle nuances that are impossible to describe, giving food a nice fresh originality.

Red Velvet Cookies

Red Velvet Cookies

This Red Velvet cookie is the cookie of all cookies. Perfect for the holiday season, as a simple dessert or just for munching while watching a movie.

Salt Crusted Prime Rib Roast

Salt Crusted Prime Rib Roast

The rib roast is a beautifully marbled hunk of meat from the rib cage. In its most familiar form, it's sold as rib-eye steak. Here we roast with a salty garlic paste that forms a crispy crust as it cooks.

Spiced Shortbread

Spiced Shortbread

Everyone loves shortbread cookies. Scottish in origin, these rich, tender and crumbly straw colored cookies are delicious, easy to make and pair beautifully with our *Amour* Merlot.

Tainori Chocolate Mousse

Tainori Chocolate Mousse

This silky smooth Chocolate Mousse is easy to make and tastes divine with the tart berries wonderfully complementing the Taïnori chocolate.

Tcho Chocolate Torte (flourless)

Tcho Chocolate Torte (flourless)

This Chocolate Torte uses no flour, allowing the chocolate to take center stage in a decadent way. The beauty of this dessert is in its simplicity, so serve it by itself or with a few berries and some freshly whipped cream.

Asiago with Rosemary and Olive Oil

Asiago with Rosemary and Olive Oil

Rosemary & Olive Oil Asiago is an Italian inspired farmstead cheese made from pasteurized cow's milk, which has been hand-rubbed with rosemary and Italian olive oil.

Blu al Don Santo

Blu al Don Santo

A palette of flavors perfectly combined to amaze the most refined gourmets, a buttery, delicate blue cheese with a hint of spice.

Blu del Monviso

Blu del Monviso

This mild Italian blue cheese Blu del Monviso with a distinct taste and creamy texture is perfect paired with both white and red wines selected from our cellar.

Robiola Rocchetta

Robiola Rocchetta

Robiola Rocchetta comes from the Piedmont region of Italy. It is a lovely and creamy cheese combining the flavors of goat, cow and sheep milk into a harmonious balance of flavor.