WINEMAKERS NOTES:
The dry and warm 2021 growing season led to a small Merlot crop of tremendous quality with intense flavor concentration. The wine has a dark blue-purple hue and a corresponding aroma profile of baked blueberries, fresh cut thyme, subtle baking spices, and crushed stones.
TASTING NOTES:
Attractive merlot with notes of blackberries and blueberries on offer as well as hints of Indian spices, violets and red licorice. Medium- to full-bodied with firm and tightly packed but very velvety tannins. Long and a little chewy at the end. Serious. Better from 2025.
- James Suckling, 96 pts.
The 2021 Merlot Hudson Vineyards is fabulous. A dollop of Cabernet Franc lifts the Merlot fruit beautifully. This dark, vivid wine has so much to offer. Hints of espresso, dried herbs, graphite and clove lend further complexity. Readers will find a wine of real pedigree.
- Vinous, 96 pts.
There's some seriously good Merlot coming from this vineyard in the Carneros region of Napa Valley, and I loved the 2021 Merlot Hudson Vineyards. Ripe black cherries, chocolaty herbs, and spicy notes flow to a medium to full-bodied, concentrated Merlot with lots of building tannins. It's a touch firm and focused today, so give bottles a few years in the cellar.
- Jeb Dunnuck, 93 pts.
