There are a number of factors that, blended together, determine a wine’s particular flavour profile, namely grape variety, soil, climate, winemaking techniques, the vine’s age, weather conditions, viticultural methods, wine processing, wines maturity level and ageing potentials. While many grape varieties are used to produce wines, only a few grapes have distinguished themselves as being particularly suited for the production of fine wine. One of the most widely cultivated “noble” grape varieties is Merlot.
The name Merlot comes from the French regional dialect word “merlot”, which means “young blackbird” (“merle” is the French word for several kinds of thrushes, including blackbirds). The naming came either because of the grape’s beautiful dark-blue colour which gives the finished drink an almost regal air, or due to the blackbird’s fondness for grapes.
While the Merlot variety of grape is thought to have its origins in France, it has actually been found to be descended from Mediterranean vines, transferring to Bordeaux in the early Christian era. The grape has been used in Bordeaux for centuries, generally playing a supporting role as a blending tool in the region’s famous wines. Even though more acres of Merlot are planted there than any other red variety, Bordeaux’s reputation is still made on Cabernet Sauvignon.
The earliest recorded mention of Merlot was in the notes of a local Bordeaux official who in 1784 labelled wine made from the grape in the Libournais region. By the 19th century it was being regularly planted in the Médoc area. Approximately 40% of the wine grapes grown in the Medoc region are Merlot. Merlot wines are also made in the northeast of Italy. The presence of Merlot in Italy was first recorded around Venice under the synonym Bordò in 1855.
The history of Merlot wines also shows us that they have proven to be very versatile. Not only do they make excellent wines all by themselves, but they are often blended with many other types of grapes to made softer varieties of red wine. The most popular wine to blend Merlot with is Cabernet Sauvignon. The grape did not make an appearance on its own, however, until the 19th century. Since then, the Merlot has gained acclaim all over Eastern Europe and Australia. Much of its popularity stems from its duality as both a hearty grape in cold temperatures that can produce complex flavours, and as a wine-grape used for complimenting harsher varietals to produce a drinkable young wine. The Merlot has been known to thrive in conditions where the ever-popular Cabernet Sauvignon cannot. Therefore, it became the obvious choice for vineyards in those areas. Another feature that has contributed to Merlot's popularity is that it offers higher alcohol content with less tannin than a Cabernet Sauvignon, even when the two are grown in the same region under the same conditions.
Merlot grapes are identified by their loose bunches of large berries. The colour has less of a blue/black hue than Cabernet Sauvignon grapes and with a thinner skin, and the grapes also have fewer tannins. Also, compared to Cabernet, a Merlot grape tends to have a higher sugar content and lower acidity. The vines usually bud early, normally ripening up to two weeks earlier than Cabernet Sauvignon. Water stress is important to the vine, with it thriving in well-drained soil.
Merlot grapes make a truly excellent red wine but they can also be very vulnerable to early spring frosts and the thin skins increase the grapes’ susceptibility to rot. It’s a sensitive grape that dislikes dry and cold conditions. In the 1960s, after a series of setbacks, French authorities in Bordeaux banned new plantings of Merlot vines for a period. Merlot wine never gained the true acclaim that it deserved until the 1970s, when fine wine became a booming proposition. Weather conditions apart, the vine is relatively easy to cultivate and has been planted widely on multiple continents but it has been slow to catch on in New World wine regions. A general rise in American wine consumption, combined with a growing preference for single-varietal wines (and away from generic blends) has led to a surge of plantings in California. Merlot has developed a wide following amongst Californian producers and has experienced a recent rise in production in both Australia and New Zealand. Today, there are over 460,000 acres of Merlot planted in the world, with 83% of these acres planted in Europe, and 24% in Bordeaux alone. Some of the other larger planting Merlot countries include Italy, South Africa, Australia, Chile, New Zealand, and Spain. The remaining areas that can boast thriving Merlot wine grapes are Israel, Hungary, Switzerland, Georgia, Russia, Mexico, Bulgaria, Portugal, Romania, Argentina, Greece and more recently Cyprus.
The Merlot grape is part of the Cabernet family. Researchers at the University of California believe that the grape is an offspring of Cabernet Franc and is a sibling of Carmenère. It produces a soft, medium-bodied red wine with juicy fruit flavours and its flavour profile is similar to Cabernet Sauvignon. Merlot varietal wine enjoyed a meteoric rise to become the darling of the red wine world in recent years. It provides a wine with aromas and flavours similar to Cabernet but also with a softer, fleshier character and fewer types of tannin, and these qualities have likely contributed to its ascent, particularly in the USA. However, the grape tends towards high production, and, if not rigorously, controlled gives high yields, therefore resulting in dull and unexciting wines. In recent years, so much dull wine has hit the market that brought confusion to many consumers regarding the potentials and how excellent Merlot can be. Regardless of region of origin, Merlot can be placed into three distinguishing categories. These three groups include the soft and fruity Merlot, the medium weight Merlot with depth, and the full and rich Merlots.
. The first group, that of the soft and fruity brand of Merlot, is smooth with a distinct fruitiness. It can be placed in the market early after bottling, but has a short lifespan. This type should be utilized within two to six years of purchase, and is suitably paired with easy dishes of beef, pork, chicken and tomato-based pasta, or with mild cheeses and salads. This Merlot can be served lightly chilled on hot summer days without fear of destroying the wine.
. The medium weight categorization of Merlots has a nice depth. These medium-bodied wines offer richness and the increased ability to age. They are good for over at least four years, with some that can exceed 20 years after bottling. When offering this selection with a meal, any pork, lamb, veal or pasta dish will suit. Older varieties may demand a simple dish, while younger wines can handle more complex foods.
. The final grouping is a full-bodied Merlot, wonderful in its flavour and bouquet. These rich Merlots accent more developed foods and creamy cheeses, bacon, beef, duck, foie gras, lamb, sausages and wild game.
Wine made from Merlot is usually characterized by an attractive fruitiness (red and black berries) and is refined and round, often with a touch of ivy. However, when it is made from insufficiently ripe grapes, herbaceous notes predominate. While some top Merlots have excellent ageing potential, most are best enjoyed within four to eight years. In general, Merlot is fairly versatile when it comes to food pairing options. It has proven itself as an excellent wine for all wine drinkers, and is one of the few red wines which solely white wine drinkers can really appreciate.
Monolithos Merlot
The Merlot grape is a relative newcomer to the area of Pachna. This is a temperamental grape, as it is very particular to its growing environment. Like many Old World varietals, Merlot seems to thrive under stressful conditions, does very well on hillsides and achieves greater complexity in such settings. Merlot vineyards in the Pachna area combine the ideal climate, soil and vineyard practices which enable the fruit to mature to a rich, velvety sweetness while retaining enough acidity to produce a balanced, structured wine.
In Pachna we have witnessed exceptional results, particularly on the hillside areas north and north-west of the village. Here, the cultivation systems produce low yields and concentrated berries that result in more dense and complex wines. The surrounding hills during the growing season are blessed with high daytime temperatures. This leads to a positive maturation period by allowing for ideal growth of the grape. Harvest begins in the middle of August and is completed early in September. The climate during harvest contributes to excellent sugar accumulation in the grapes, and the humidity during the nights promotes the development of aromatic substances. This premise is in line with other winemakers’ preferences for hillside plantings, where natural drainage keeps the vines digging deeper for water, stressing their systems and guaranteeing more complex flavour profiles.
The 2008 Monolithos Merlot vintage proved to be relatively difficult to get right, both in the vineyard and the winery. The grapes were at full maturation in the last week of August, and the fruit was harvested and transported to the winery early in the morning. After de-stemming and crushing, the grapes were transferred to the temperature-controlled tanks. Due to its delicate nature, Merlot required special handling in the winery since too hot a fermentation and the palate impression would turn quickly to cooked flavours; too cold a fermentation and the fruit would never yield the intricate aromas it possesses. Grapes, juice and skins were macerated for eight days in the stainless steel tanks at a temperature of 22°C. After separation from the must, the alcoholic fermentation continued in closed tanks. Finally, the wine was refined in stainless steel tanks to preserve the fruit flavours that are characteristic of this varietal. Merlot needs a lot of oxygen during fermentation to turn the soft flavours into complex flavours. Getting oxygen into wine is accomplished by “pumping over”. The 2008 Monolithos Merlot is made from 100% Merlot grapes with an alcohol level of 13.5%. It was bottled early in spring 2009.
Wine News and Information
. The EU Commission has announced a delay in the adoption of its reforms to winemaking regulations, including the controversial allowance for table rosés to be made from mixing whites with reds, after the World Trade Organization requested more time to scrutinize the changes. Rosé has long been made by crushing red grapes, letting the juice extract a little colour and flavour from the skins, and then draining the juice off before fermentation. The colour of the resulting wine can range from a pale salmon colour to deep pink. As part of an ambitious overhaul of European wine regulations, however, the European Union will legalize the production of rosé by blending red and white wines. This will be done by changing the legal definition of rosé, as part of an effort to loosen the continent’s strict winemaking rules. But traditional producers of the pink-hued wines are none too happy about it.
According to Mann, a spokesman for the Commission, the change is to make it easier for table-wine producers to compete with other wine regions, some of which already use this method. “Wines made in this way are already sold on our market, but only those produced outside the E.U.,” said Mann. “That makes no sense to us. Why should we allow others to do it and ban our own producers from doing so?”
The EU wine reform management committee was originally due to vote upon the proposed regulations on 27 April but will now meet on 19 June, conditional to WTO approval in May. The new regulations will become law on 21 August.
. A study involving “A year-long life cycle analysis (LCA)” of the environmental impact of cork, plastic and aluminium screw-cap stoppers has found that cork is the most environmentally-friendly stopper. The study was commissioned by Amorim, the world’s largest cork manufacturer, and was undertaken by analysts PriceWaterhouseCoopers. The report found that plastic stoppers, including the plastic capsule that goes over the top of the bottle, are nine times more damaging to the environment – and aluminium screw-caps are 22 times – than cork stoppers, including corks with a plastic capsule. The LCA included an evaluation of a plastic capsule designed for both cork and plastic stoppers to compare “like with like” against screw caps which do not need a plastic capsule.
The study was conducted in accordance with ISO (International Standards Organisation) protocols which require peer review, and involved representatives from manufacturers of the other types of closures as well as a life cycle analysis expert. It calculated various environmental impacts: non-renewable energy consumption, water consumption, greenhouse gas emissions, atmospheric acidification, formation of photochemical oxidants which cause ozone layer depletion and the production of solid waste, and the eutrophication (loss of animal life) of surface water. Of the seven environmental impacts studied, cork performed best on six of them.
. Scientists have discovered a grape-seed extract that can force leukaemia cells to die. Laboratory experiments show the commercially available extract caused 76% of the blood cancer cells to be destroyed within 24 hours in a process of natural self-destruction called apoptosis. All healthy cells remained unharmed. Although the research is in its early stages and it has not been recommended people eat grapes to stave off cancer, US scientists believe the results could mark the start of promising new treatments. It is the antioxidants in grape-seed, including resveratrol, which is known to have anti-cancer properties that are believed to cause the cells to die. Previous tests found that the extract was effective on skin, breast, bowel, lung, stomach and prostate cancer cells, but this is the first time it has been tested on leukaemia.
Professor Xianglin Shi, from the University of Kentucky in Philadelphia who led the research, said: “These results could have implications for the incorporation of agents such as grape seed extract into the prevention or treatment of haematological (blood) malignancies and possibly other cancers. What everyone seeks is an agent that has an effect on cancer cells but leaves normal cells alone, and this shows that grape seed extract fits into this category.”
Monolithos Monthly News
In the month of May, the warmer temperatures encourage the vines to flower. The growers hope for warmer weather to assist in this critical stage. Traditionally, harvest starts approximately 100 days after flowering occurs. Soon after flowering, the petals drop, as tiny hard green grapes start to become visible. The never-ending job of caring for the vineyard continues. The vineyards are inspected, weeded, and sprayed, as weeds constantly compete with the grapevines for nutrients.
At the Winery, the bottling of the Ayios Stephanos red vintage 2008 has been completed. Of course, the entire range of Monolithos wines is available for tasting or purchasing from your regular point of sale. If at any time you are passing near the village of Pachna and wish to visit the winery or sample any of our products, Martin Wood will be pleased to meet and assist you at his “Fig Tree Villa” in Pachna, so do not hesitate to phone him at 25-816212 or 99-165995.
Regards from all of us here at Monolithos and always remember:
With wine and hope, anything is possible.
Spanish Proverb
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