Red Wine
Merlot
They vary considerably in their flavours, tannin profiles, and, most significantly the order in which they ripen. As a generalisation, the Left Bank, including the Medoc and Pessac-Léognan / Graves tend to use Cabernet as their backbone. The right bank, including, Pomerol and Saint-Émilion, Merlot as there backbone.
As with all varieties, the below commentary is a generalisation. Merlot will express differently around the world, in individual vineyards, and, depending on the vignerons’ and winemakers’ handling.
Merlot
The backbone of the cooler right bank wine, the earlier ripening Merlot, has softer, more supple tannins, less overt fruit characters than Cabernet Sauvignon, showing more restraint. Again, it benefits from extended post-fermentation maceration.
The big names like Pétrus and Trotanoy make stunning wines.
Move to warm climates in Australia, Italy (most famously Tuscany), and, America and it is a different beast altogether.
Tasting of a couple of dozen Merlots from around the world a few decades ago revealed an incredible diversity of style from supple and silky to bold inky and structured.
Interviewing Luca di Napoli from Castello dei Rampolla we explored how much it easier it was for him to ripen the Bordeaux varieties in Tuscany, and, just how different the tannins and flavours were.
The biggest name in Merlot in Italy is, undoubtedly, Masseto!
In Australia, large plantings of Merlot were actually incorrectly identified Cabernet Franc!
