The near full body is lush and almost jammy, moderate tannin and acids both pressing down along with a pushy flavor profile reminiscent of the aroma, but approaching that syrupy quality that turns me off, yet not quite there, and thank you Mondavi for that.
The finish gathers spice and tart red cherry and carries it a considerable distance with just a hint of mint.
Apothic Red Table Wine lovers might just benefit from tasting this Merlot as an exercise in understanding what a step-up this Merlot is, yet remain in their comfort zone.
Index-of-reviewed-wines
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Dennis, you can't even mention Apothic in the same breath as Mondavi. One is a goupy, flabby sweet Robitussin tasting concoction and the other is a storied winery from Napa.
ReplyDeleteThat was sugar coated. :)
But I applaud you for the encouragement.
John, I can't tell you how many people I've talked to that just "love" Apothic red!
DeleteYeah, thanks for noticing that I'm trying to gently educate the taste-buds of budding wine drinkers; often they are like coffee drinkers that start with cream and LOTS of sugar, but have graduated to black French-roast;-)
I'm glad to see you're energized and quite lively!
Thanks for your comments.
With such huge production, the Mondavi label may not be a sexy pick, but they really do make some solid, well-priced wines under this label (Fume Blanc, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot).
ReplyDeleteNick
Nick, U R so right about that, and I have no problem recommending their wines. I just noticed that they are keeping their price on this Merlot the same as it has been for years now, however, not the Oakville!
DeleteCabernet, that is:-)
Delete