Product description

Merlot from The Wetzel Family Estate has a reputation for being a big, structured wine. First produced in 1984, this has never been one of those fruit bombs or thin and wimpy wines. A old school Merlot that shows good structure. Overall, it was a cool growing year with fewer heat spikes than in the past few years. Diligent vineyard management was the key to achieving great fruit development and uniform ripening. The grapes had good structure, balance and complexity at harvest. The wine has that classic AVV structure, but it shows a touch more restraint than prior vintages. So what makes our Merlot so different than others? It is the warm days and cool nights of the valley, combined with the gravelly loam soil, along with vineyard management and handcrafting the wine.