WTN: 2009 Magnotta Equus Series Merlot

VQA Niagara Peninsula. Vinyl (synthetic) cork closure. 13.5% alc./vol. A very reasonable $9.95 at the Magnotta retail outlet.

Lovely saturation, with a dark cherry / ruby colour and a deep ruby core. Given some time in the open bottle, the wine opened up very nicely with varietally accurate aromas of cherries, strawberries and plums - all very lush - with just a dash of bell pepper, though very slight. Plushy, velvety. Great structure on the entry, with balance and nice fleshy tannin. Warm and full on the mid-palate, with surprising depth given the otherwise weak 2009 vintage. Warm and polished on the finish.

Really quite a surprise, as I had not had a Niagara Merlot for many years. This was much better than I remembered Niagara Merlots being in the past... And for the price, there truly are no complaints.

This would be great with all manner of beef dishes.

What's this?! Paul B. drinking a Merlot??!! The horror

My semi-annual palate recalibration

I couldn't get any Merlot grapes from the US side of the border last year, so I bought crushed must from NOTL to blend 30% into 70% Cab Franc from Niagara County, NY grapes. It was bottled about a month ago, after spending 11 months in a new oak barrel. So far, it's pretty nice, but I think some bottle aging will improve it. Paul - I think you will be impressed with the 2010 reds from the region when they get released.

Paul - I think you will be impressed with the 2010 reds from the region when they get released.

Hey Howie,

Yes - I've been waiting very impatiently for them for months, but their release at the local LCBOs has been essentially nonexistent thus far. I think they must have a huge stock of 2009s yet.