W3 - William White Wines
2006 Napa Valley Merlot
Merlot
California: Napa Valley
Mission Briefing
The best gets better... Redux
Special Note: Last month we ran a small quantity of today’s wine. It was all that we could get our hands on at the time, and many of our Operatives missed out. Many of those Operatives that did get some home wanted more, so we sent Agent Red back to beg for another allocation. Here is our original review:
Today’s wine comes to us from one of our most popular wineries, W3 Wines in the Napa Valley. Their W3 (formerly Caymus vineyard) Cabernet Sauvignon is one of our best-selling Cabs of all time, so when Agent Red had the chance to snap up every last bottle of W3’s 2006 W3 Wines Napa Valley Merlot, he wasted no time!
This elegant and extracted Merlot is a true delight that we offer to you with our heartiest recommendation. If you were a fan of the W3 Cab, this wine will delight you just as much. If you are a fan of fantastic Merlot, you’ll be very impressed.
This wine really evolves in the glass; the more you swirl it, the more complexity, richness and character it exudes. This is no wallflower Merlot. Think a Merlot for classic Napa Cabernet Sauvignon lovers.
Tasting Profile
| Look: | Gorgeous maroon hues through a darker and slightly opaque heart of garnet ink. |
|---|---|
| Smell: | Lush and layered with brilliant black cherry, smoky pomegranate, sweet tobacco, sweet brown spice, blackberry and blueberry compote, violet tea and earth. |
| Taste: | Rich and structured with concentrated dark fruit of black cherry, stewed blackberry and braised fig, smoky blueberry, subtle dried herbs, India black tea leaf and dried violets. |
| Finish: | Front of the mouth tannin drives fruits to the far corners of the palate as the wine slowly dries the entire mouth and puckers the lips. |
| Pairing: | Grilled lamb chops with rosemary and lemon, served with a side of red potatoes and pearl onions. |
What the Winery Says
These vines are planted on our premium Pocai Vineyard location, in one of the warmest locations in the Napa Valley. This vineyard is ideal for ripening mature tannins and flavor in our Merlot grapes. The 2006 vintage brought an average year with an extended cool period at the end. That gave this vineyard incredible hang time and concentration. The rockier soils of this vineyard site accentuated these attributes to bring about the highest quality grapes our vineyard can yield.
A classic Merlot in its own right. this wine has bright fruit aromatics that are balanced well by tea leaves and tobacco spice. The initial characteristics of cherries, strawberry,and red apple blend well with the subtle hints of sage and pipe tobacco. The palate is silky smooth while retaining the full luscious mouthfeel we’ve come to expect from a Napa Valley Merlot. The finish on this Merlot has great length and dimension. This wine should have the longevity to age well, but tastes very delicious right now. We feel this wine has classic characters of a Northern Napa Merlot.
- Winemaker
- William White
- Appellation
- Napa Valley, California
- Fruit Variety
- 95% Merlot, 5% Cabernet Franc
- Cooperage
- 16 months in French oak, 33% new
- ABV
- 14.4%
About the Winery
W3 - William White Wines specializes in sought after Napa Valley varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The winery, based in St. Helena, California, produces rich, fruit forward, and outright delicious wines.