Description
Winemaker Notes
The 2019 Merus opens with deep aromas of cassis and blackberry, with layers of vanilla bean, cedar, graphite and a subtle minerality. Full bodied on the palate with plush, velvety tannins and signature flavors of saturated black fruits. A fine grain oak texture lingers on the smooth finish. A wine of great structure and power, it will continue to develop further complexity with bottle age and show best over the next 15-25 years.
Professional Ratings
97Jeb Dunnuck
A killer bottle of Napa Valley magic, the 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon from Merus is 97% Cabernet Sauvignon and 3% Petit Verdot. It’s a powerful, full-bodied, uber-ripe beauty that stays lively and balanced, with beautiful blue fruits, as well as smoked tobacco, chocolate, and scored earth-like aromas and flavors. A beast of a wine with a great mid-palate and velvety tannins, it should shed its considerable baby fat over the coming 4-6 years and have two decades of overall longevity.
94Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate
Still tight and unevolved, Merus’s 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon wraps blueberry and cassis fruit in a sheath of 100% new French oak. Sourced primarily from Coombsville (but labeled as Napa Valley), it’s full-bodied and concentrated, firmly structured enough to suggest cellaring for at least a few years, with a dusting of fine-grained tannins lingering on the long finish. Despite a labeled alcohol of 15.8%, it doesn’t come across as hot or unbalanced, a remarkable achievement.
Rating: 94+
94Decanter
Winemaker Eric Baugher sourced most of the Cabernet Sauvignon for this vintage from Coombsville. Aged for 24 months in 100% new French oak. High-toned aromas of raspberry liqueur, caramel, pastis and blueberry. The palate is packed with juicy blackberry, blueberry preserves, sweet cedar, fig and mocha. Palate-etching tannins are framed by a firm backbone of acidity bringing everything nicely into balance.
93Wine Spectator
Ripe, fresh and very direct, with a mix of red and black currant preserves laced with violet, roasted alder and licorice and backed by a subtle earthy note through the finish. On the toasted side, but has ample fruit for balance. Best from 2023 through 2036.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.