Amour Merlot 2007
A classic 100% Merlot, with a translucent ruby color and wonderful blackberry aromas. In the mouth, luscious ripe blackberry fruit and liquorices extend into soft tannin with a well balanced acidity.
Famed wine writer Jancis Robinson called Merlot, “Cabernet Sauvignon without the pain, offering the classic nobility of a Bordeaux but without the austere tannins.”
Excellent with non-spiced meats such as pork chop, rack of lamb or filet mignon but also try it with anything chocolate.
Our 2007 Amour is 100% Merlot from a single vineyard on our home ranch. Its voluptuous taste and huge dark fruit impact in the middle palate. This, together with a miraculous, long-lived velvety soft finish all show that this is a well balanced wine to caress the palate and give rise to that popular new wine jargon, “great mouthfeel”.
This year of contrasts began dry with some very cold days and single-digit night temperatures and continued dry, with about 60% of normal precipitation. Temperatures were warmer than normal as winter continued into spring with resulting earlier budding, bloom and set in the vineyards.
The summer growing season continued on the mild to cool side, with fewer days in the 90s, and harvest followed a traditional, even relaxed, pace. There was a brief period of heat that spiked around Labor Day, but the temperatures cooled after several days. This heat spike added the boost of sugar development we were looking for to complement the excellent acid structure developed in the white varieties.
Clusters, as well as individual berries on the clusters, though set at a normal quantity, were notably smaller in all varieties due to the dry season. In September the region saw a couple of periods of brief precipitation. Nearly all white varieties were already picked and the thicker-skinned black varieties like Cabernet and Merlot were unaffected by the rain.
The valley floor crop, including most of the black varieties, was almost fully harvested when unseasonably cool and wet weather arrived the second week in October. The higher elevation vineyards still had anywhere from 25-50% of their crop on the vine, but while the rain was just enough to penetrate several inches into the soil, not enough to get to the root zone of most vineyards. Indian Summer returned with warm, clear days and vineyard crews sprang into action to finish harvest for what appears to be a vintage of exceptional quality.
French Oak for 22 months, approximately 40% new, 40% one use and the balance neutral.
Cases produced = 252
| Color | Red |
|---|---|
| Vintage | 2007 |
| Style | Red Bordeaux |
| Appellation | Dry Creek Valley |
| Varietal | Merlot |
| Date Bottled | 9th Mar 2010 |
| Drinkable | 2011 - 2018 |
| Alcohol | 14.20% |
| Bottle Size | 750ml |
