The start to this glorious Autumn season has been incredible.  I cannot remember such a sunny beginning to our usual rainy few months.  And what better way to celebrate the Fall colours than with a well-crafted bottle of British Columbia Merlot.

Merlot is B.C.’s most planted red varietal with 1,564 acres currently planted (winebc.com).  With so much variety to choose from and so many great B.C. wineries to support, my review today is on Tinhorn Creek 2014 ‘Oldfield Reserve’ Merlot.

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In the glass, this Merlot is bright, ruby red in colour.  On the nose, there are delicious aromas of spicy plum cake, mocha, a dusting of cinnamon whipped together with strawberry and stewed cranberry.

On the palate, the acidity is fresh and vibrant with a hint of chalky tannin.  The flavour profile is structured with plum, strawberry and black cherry leading the way, followed by delicate baking spices and a hint of tobacco on the end. Delicious.  This is a layered red wine with a lingering, pleasing finish – very moreish.

Tinhorn Creek’s ‘Oldfield Reserve’ Merlot is made with 85% Merlot from the Diamond Back Vineyard on Black Sage Bench and has 15% Cabernet Franc added for complexity. It is aged in French oak barrels for 18 months which imparts a gentle oaky toast to wine.  It is 14.5% abv. and retails for $28.99. Tinhorn Creek’s winemaker, Andrew Windsor, has crafted a very well structured Merlot with this 2014 vintage and boasts a 10 – 20 year cellaring potential. This great wine will be released to the public for sale February or March of 2018.

Next week, I am off to Santa Rosa, Sonoma for the 10th annual Wine Bloggers Conference.  My next post will come to you direct from California.  I look forward to seeing some incredible friends I have met over the years and visit a wine region of the world I have yet to discover.

If you have a favourite winery in Sonoma or Napa that I should keep my eyes open for, please do send me a comment!

Enjoy!

XO
C