2017 Merlot

A seamless Merlot packed full of dense flavor including black cherry, plum, milk chocolate, wild strawberry, and toasted almond. This wine is all about balanced intensity, with fruit and texture galore to mirror its firm but velvety mountain tannins.

The 2017 growing season was generally mild until early-September when a heatwave pushed the mercury up to near 105° F for several days. This gave our vines a jump-start and allowed us to harvest our eight merlot blocks between September 7th and October 7th. After an average of 20 days on the skins, the wine lots were gently pressed and racked to French oak barrels, 40% new, for a total of 14 months. Our 100% merlot base blend was assembled after the first 10 months in barrel, while the finishing touch of 4% cabernet sauvignon was added the following spring.

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Appellation: Napa Valley
Vintage: 2017
Harvest: October 2017
Fermentation: Stainless Steel
Cooperage: French Oak
Blend: 96% Merlot
4% Cabernet Sauvignon
Alcohol: 14.4%
Bottling: April 2018
Production: 4404 cases
Release Date: August 2019
Release Price: $62.00

Reviews

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  • Robert Parker's Wine Advocate: Issue 245 End of October 2019 - Rating: 93

    Containing 4% Cabernet Sauvignon, the deep garnet-purple colored 2017 Merlot offers up pronounced notes of plum preserves, baked blackberries and black forest cake with suggestions of baking spices, licorice and dark chocolate. Full-bodied, rich and velvety textured, the palate is laden with dark fruit and spice layers, beautifully defined by a refreshing line, finishing with great persistence. 4,404 cases produced.

  • Connoisseurs' Guide to California Wine: October 2019 - Rating: 91

    Pride’s 2017 edition is a serious, solidly structured Merlot that takes a moment or two in fully opening up, but, when it does, reveals lots of deep and well-defined dark fruit lightly overlain by creamy oak and accented with subtle touches of briar and forest floor. Already fairly complex for a wine as young as it is, it exhibits fine concentration and fruity muscle without erring to sinewy toughness, but its best clearly lies ahead and it warrants a stay of three to five years in the cellar lest it be drunk up in advance of reaching its very considerable best.

  • Vinous: January 2020 - Rating: 90

    The 2017 Merlot shows all the natural richness and intensity of the year, but also has just enough freshness to keep things in check. Cedar, tobacco, dried flower and spice notes add nuance to a Merlot that very nicely balances richness with savory complexity. This is very nicely done, especially for the year.

  • Jeb Dunnuck: Napa Valley’s 2017s - Rating: 90

    The 2017 Merlot is a juicy, easy-drinking effort that does well in the vintage. Ripe black cherries, mulberries, white flowers, and a touch of damp earth emerges from this Pomerol look-alike. It's medium-bodied and has sweet tannins and a balanced, already delicious style. Drink it over the coming decade.