2007 Leonetti Merlot Walla Walla Valley
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Tasting notes
Bright, full red-ruby. Subdued but pure nose offers cassis, violet, licorice and a whiff of menthol. Juicy, suave and smooth but quite dry; not at all a fleshy style of merlot. In fact, this minerally midweight is made in a distinctly claret-like style. This is blended with 7% petit verdot; past vintages included some cabernet sauvignon and cab franc.
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jay S Miller, Wine Advocate
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The purple-colored 2007 Merlot contains 7% Petit Verdot. The nose offers up a whiff of new oak along with scorched earth, mocha, black currant, blackberry, and a hint of chocolate. This leads to a medium to full-bodied, opulent wine with layered, savory fruit, succulent flavors, plenty of fine-grained tannin, and a lengthy, pure finish. It will continue to blossom over the next 5 years and present a drinking window extending from 2013 to 2022. Gary Figgins and son, Chris, keep tweaking things in the vineyards and cellar as they move toward totally biodynamic farming. As usual, their wines are benchmarks against which others must be measured. Tel. (509) 525-1428; www.leonetticellar.com