Beaulieu Vineyard Napa Merlot ( BV )

WINE TYP - ERed
VARIETAL - Merlot
REGION - Napa Valley
WINEMAKER - Jeffrey Stambor

Intriguing nuances of dark chocolate and dried Marasca cherries layer the ripe plum and blackberry notes of our 2014 Napa Valley Merlot. As you swirl the wine, you’ll also discover hints of black mission fig and licorice. On the palate, the textured flavors are plush and graceful, yet with ample structure. A year of aging in oak barrels sourced from three different counties added hints of sweet oak spices and espresso.

VINTAGE NOTE
We sourced the majority of grapes for this wine from Calistoga, Rutherford and the Los Carneros American Viticultural Areas (AVAs) of Napa Valley. The diversity of soils and mesoclimates in these regions, as well as of clones and cultivation techniques, contribute to this wine’s layers of flavors. Grapes from our estate vineyards in warmer Calistoga contribute juicy, dark-fruit and chocolate expression, while our vineyards in the cooler Los Carneros give bright berry notes. Rutherford vineyards, near our winery in the center of the valley, added plum while enhancing the wine’s silky tannin structure.


WINEMAKER'S NOTE
After the grapes were crushed, we fermented the must in stainless-steel tanks until dry. Gentle pump-overs during fermentation extracted flavor, deep color and tannins from the skins. We then pressed and transferred all the wines to small oak barrels coopered with Hungarian, American and French oak to develop and integrate flavors. Following barrel aging, we blended the Merlot with a small amount of complementary varieties to enhance its structure.