Merlot: The Redheaded Stepchild
posted on 28 March 2009 by dan
Poor, poor Merlot… 5 years ago, the movie Sideways took a fairly arbitrary stance against the noble grape (remember: Paul Giamatti hamming it up, screeching - literally screeching - about “not drinking any effing Merlot”). In the years since, Merlot’s garnered a reputation for being flabby, watered down, mass-produced… and Pinot Noir’s reputation, Giamatti’s obsession in the movie, skyrocketed. In 2009, we’re still feeling the cultural reverberation. The price of Pinot Noir has shot through the roof and Merlot racks collect dust in the dankest corner of wine stores.
Is it fair? Nope. Before the movie, it’s true, Merlot had been the casual drinker’s go-to for years and years, causing the larger production companies to churn out slop to meet demand. And that slop really wasn’t that great. Still isn’t that great. But, Merlot’s been around a long, long time (Bordeaux, anyone?) and it’s unfair to assume that all Merlot is created equal. If the cheap swill is still cheap swill, the finely crafted Merlots are still finely crafted Merlots.
And the world of critics is finally catching up. One would think being a wine critic implies a certain lack of bias and an open mind, but… well, the critics have been equally unfair. Until now. A few weeks back, Dorothy Gaiter and John Brecher, who write the Wall Street Journal’s immensely respected tasting column, blind tasted fifty bottles of Merlot. Reportedly, they entered with dread, but left pleasantly surprised. Yup. The bottles that surprised them included a bottle each of Charles Krug, Ravenswood, Simi… So, maybe we can expect a little more respect for Merlot in the future.
Here at dT, we’re not even close to surprised, pleasantly or otherwise. We’ve been drinking Merlot all along. If you want to check out some cool bottles, try the Wildhurst merlot, which goes for $15.99. Want to check out what we think about it? Read Jeff’s rant on it in our wine review section, Don’t Worry, I’ll Drink It For You.
Don’t pay attention to the media. Pay attention to your palette. And if there isn’t a single Merlot that you don’t like, don’t drink Merlot. But give it a chance. That’s all I ask.
dJp
Tags: merlot, paul giamatti, pinot noir, sideways, wall street journal
Category: The Wine Blog