Hanaiali'i Napa Valley Merlot (5)

With either Fish or Laube, I would think you would be okay. Looking forward to it actually, I enjoy comparing my notes with the paid professionals.

I think that’s kind of how I feel about it too…

It’s probably a stereotype, but big Merlot’s often don’t seem to have the body/complexity of the big cabs, and as a result start get a bit lost in the category.

At this time, we do not allow shipments to PA. It may be that we’re still reviewing the law or there may be wording in the law that makes shipping difficult with our model.

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I agree, I really like soft merlots as well. I think they both have a place… But the problem for me is that most of the Cabernet needs to sit for years, sometimes as many at 8 - 10 years, to drink… With a big merlot, you can open it up in just a few months and pair it with all the same wonderful foods and experiences that you would the Cabernet without the wait! It’s just really hard to make a soft merlot and stay true to the vineyard if you do it in Napa!

Have a great day!
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I’m sorry… we just dont have our license in that sate yet… but we are working on it, I promise!

Well please feel free to reach out to me, I"d love to discuss more. I’d also note that while I suppose I am a “professional”, I’m still putting everything I have into the wine and the winery so I’m not exactly “paid”… But I will be, one day!

Yea, it can be a tough spot to sell… But once people open the bottle they seem to fall in love. So many people say they don’t like Merlot, when in reality what they like is bigger fuller wines… And a lot of times they aren’t ready for a massive cab, so we’ve found that a big merlot is a perfect gateway wine; and one that you can drink now instead of waiting 5-10 years to enjoy at it’s peak. Happy wooting!

Too many of those people are just quoting Sideways… of course ignoring the fact the Cheval Blanc is a Merlot…

One of my favorite stories about that was an interview between David Letterman and Cameron Diaz. She apparently was just getting into wine and her wine guy was serving Petrus for dinner. Dave said, “oh so you like Merlot” and she yells “oh yuck, no, I hate Merlot!”… Not an exact quote… but hopefully someone told her she was spending thousands of dollars a night on Merlot!!!

Winemaker participation:
97

Good to see this activity from a new to woot (?) producer!
:slight_smile:

Agree with you!!

Awe shucks, my first 97!!! Thanks!!!

I think it’s a great opportunity to get to know y’all and talk about the things I love… So thank you guys and I’m PUMPED On my 97!

Yea, it’s such a bummer. People are afraid that there is something wrong about admitting they don’t know that much about wine, or specifically Merlot. So they hear it and then feel like they need to feel that way too… I understand at some level because I don’t often speak up about the things I don’t know about but if more people realized that all that matters that you like it… ah well, save the Merlot for those of us that know!

This is exactly why the whole thing in Sideways about Merlot was brilliant.
If there’s one thing I cannot stand, for instance, is a bottle of CA Chardonnay in that horrible vanilla/oak/butter style that overpowers the fruit, but I certainly don’t hate Chardonnay. One of my favorite whites of all time comes from Chablis. But if you walk up to the bar just about anywhere and tell them to give you a glass of Chardonnay, you’ll likely get 5 ounces of Cougar Juice…

I’m sorry but I must interject.(Don’t know much about this wine but I’m sure its great. Although having enjoyed lots of right bank Bordeaux I’m not sure I understand the “Cab-drinkers-Merlot” concept)

I do take issue with calling the Falcons “chokers”. With the exception of Ryan’s sack and failure to score with first down on the 30 up by 8 points they played darn well.

Its not easy to beat a solid defense and the best quarterback. Ever.

That’s exactly right… But ultimately I think we have the cougars to blame for that one :wink:

The cab-drinkers Merlot idea comes from the fact that a lot of CA Merlots are made in a very soft, light or watery style. When you tell people that this is a heavy merlot, they have trouble conceptualizing what a heavier version might be and start thinking of bud light VS Budweiser and other things that have less to do with flavor and more to do with calories. By calling it a cab-drinkers merlot, the hope is that people will understand that wines like this are bigger and bolder and have many of the attributes of a cabernet when it comes to complexity and flavor profiles.

I personally feel that the Falcons loss was due to poor coaching and the decision to play prevent defense and choose to simply try not to make a huge mistake (which, like this year, usually leads to huge mistakes) rather than go out and keep attacking. They changed their game and the game changed. By one of the greatest, no doubt. But if they had kept playing the same game they started with, no one comes back from that.

I agree :slight_smile: