If you read my earlier post this week on the Robert Mondavi Private Selection Vinetta, you saw that future vintages are going to be renamed Meritage. OK – that’s nice enough name, but does it mean anything? Actually it does.
A Meritage is a red blend, but not just any old blend. Another apt name for this wine would be American Bordeaux. True Bordeaux is from France and probably one of the world’s great (read expensive) red wines along with French Burgundy and the Tuscan Super Reds. If you know anything about French wine making, it is all about rules: the grapes must be grown within one foot of a designated area; only certain varietals may be used and in very strict combinations. Well Americans are always resistant to rules and American vitners, while respecting French Bordeaux, wanted to make a similar red blend their own way.
In the late 80′s a group of California wineries got together and formed something called the Meritage Association. The goal was to promote an American red blend in the Bordeaux tradition. The only requirement for a wine to be called Meritage is that it contain two or more of the traditional Bordeaux grapes. In case you care, they are: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Malbec, and Carmenere.
The Wine Witch is a big fan of blends. There is always so many layers of flavor going on as each grape contributes its own voice. I should probably change the first sentence to – The Wine Witch is a big fan of well executed blends. Just as too many cooks spoil the broth – too many grapes can yield to chaos in the glass if not in the hands of a skilled winemaker.
Cheers!
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Posted in Wine Musings | 
Tags: California, France, Meritage Association, Wine Musings | |
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