Our 2020 Merlot was harvested on September 15th at 26.73 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts.
After a fifteen day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging. Two small lots were pressed of into new Gamba G7 French oak barrels.
After twenty two months of aging our 2020 Merlot was bottled on September 1st 2022 with 14.77% alcohol, 6.5 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.81. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free (less than 0.38 grams per bottle). No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2019 Merlot was harvested on October 7th at 26.73 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts.
After a fifteen day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging. One small lot was pressed of into a new Gamba G7 French oak barrel.
After twenty two months of aging our 2019 Merlot was bottled on September 17th 2021 with 15.79% alcohol, 6.4 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.81. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free. No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2018 Merlot was harvested on September 26th at 25.36 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts.
After a nineteen day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging. One small lot was pressed of into a new Gamba G7 French oak barrel.
After twenty two months of aging our 2018 Merlot was bottled in August 2020 with 15.63% alcohol, 7.4 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.68. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free (less than 0.15 grams per bottle). No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2017 Merlot was harvested on September 29th at 23.98 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts.
After a sixteen day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging. One small lot was pressed of into a new Gamba Allier French oak barrel.
After twenty two months of aging our 2017 Merlot was bottled on August 7th 2021 with 15.10% alcohol, 3.73 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.73. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free (less than 0.06 grams per bottle). No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2016 Merlot was harvested on September 22nd at 26.08 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts.
After a nineteen day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging. One small lot was pressed of into a new Sylvain Grand Reserve French oak barrel.
After twenty two months of aging our 2016 Merlot was bottled in August 2018 with 15.35% alcohol, 7.6 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.67. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free (less than 0.15 grams per bottle). No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2015 Merlot was harvested on September 4th at 24.47 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts.
After a nine day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging. One small lot was pressed of into a new Sylvain Grand Reserve French oak barrel.
After twenty two months of aging our 2015 Merlot was bottled on August 17t, 2017 with 14.06% alcohol, 6.2 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.67. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free (less than 0.06 grams per bottle). No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2014 Merlot was harvested on September 20th at 25.90 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts.
After a eleven day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging. One small lot was pressed of into a new Sylvain Grand Reserve French oak barrel.
After twenty two months of aging our 2014 Merlot was bottled in August 2016 with 15.09% alcohol, 6.8 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.67. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free. No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2013 Merlot was harvested on September 7th at 25.83 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts.
After a ten day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging. One small lot was pressed of into a new Sylvain Grand Reserve French oak barrel.
After twenty two months of aging our 2013 Merlot was bottled in August 2015 with 14.61% alcohol, 6.6 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.67. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free. No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2012 Merlot was harvested on September 24th at 23.8 brix where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Two separate lots were created by utilizing two different yeast strains: BM 4x4 and F15 oenological yeasts. On September 26th a 4g of DAP (diammonium phosphate) was added as a yeast nutrient to provide adequate nitrogen for the yeast during fermentation.
After a eight day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging.
After twenty two months of aging our 2012 Merlot was bottled in August 2014 with 14.77% alcohol, 6.6 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.48. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free. No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Our 2011 Merlot was harvested on October 21st where it was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Inoculated with BM 4x4 oenological yeast.
After a sixteen day fermentation the Merlot was pressed off in neutral French oak barrels for aging.
After twenty two months of aging our 2011 Merlot was bottled in August 2013 with 14.75% alcohol, 6.8 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.51. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free. No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.
Two pick dates were utilized during harvest. Half of the fruit came in on October 29th with the second coming in on November 5th. Each lot was hand sorted, destemmed and crushed into small open-top vessels for fermentation. Inoculated with BM 4x4 oenological yeast.
Unfortunately my harvest records were lost to the sands of time regarding the fermentation progress and brix at harvest but it was pressed off after roughly 14 days into neutral French oak barrels for aging.
After twenty five months of aging both lots were blended together and bottled in December 2012 with 14.15% alcohol, 8.1 g/L total acidity and a pH of 3.60. Sulfites we adjusted to a level of 30ppm (parts per million) prior to bottling to inhibit microbial activity. Sugar free. No filtering, fining agents or animal products were used in the production of this wine.

Merlot is where it all began back in 2010 when I simply wanted to make a little bit of a “house red wine” to share with friends or family. Little did I know that nearly two decades later this wine would become a flagship of our wine program.

We have always known that Merlot is one of the greatest wine grape varieties out there, regardless of what Sideways, had to say about that. The challenge, when it comes to Merlot, is its plush fruit characteristics. If you wait too long to harvest it can get too flabby and not have enough structure to give it the “X” factor it needs. During the aging process you also do not want to overwhelm it with too much new oak.

Each year our goal is to avoid those pitfalls and create a vibrant, well-structure and sexy kind of red wine that you can enjoy now or allow it to age further in the bottle to explore a whole new layer of character.