2021 Meerlust Merlot

Full bottle 1,373 g. 100% Merlot. Estate fruit from two warm, north-facing vineyards. It is made up of a few individual parcels that are all fermented separately before undergoing malolactic fermentation in 300-litre barrels where the wines were aged for six months. After blending the wine went back to barrel for 12 months in 40% new French oak. RS 2.71 g/l, pH 3.48, TA 6.33 g/l. Textbook, old-school Stellenbosch Merlot. Everything in place: pencils lined up, plums centre of cedar frame, green pepper under blackcurrant. Scratchy little tannins, the sweetness of plump fruit spilling through every pore. Well-modulated richness. A real classic! And it just shows how lovely varietal Merlot can be when grown in the right spot. Lamb burger/mint mayo wine. (TC)