Merlot is a dark blue–coloured wine grape variety, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name Merlot is thought to be a diminutive of merle, the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the color of the grape
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Château Mauvesin was originally built as a real fort with towers, machicolations and arrow slits. The estate was first acquired by Jean de Foix Grailly in 1457. At the end of the fifteenth century it became the property of the Rivière family and was to remain so for many years. After many centuries exchanging hands including some ''lucky'' heirs in the middle, finally this historical wine and its Château was acquired by Lilian Barton Sartorius and re-baptized it Château Mauvesin Barton. This 220-hectare estate, of which 55 hectares are under vine, has undergone extensive renovation. The unique essence of the Château has, however, remained totally unscathed. With the Barton family's centuries of wine expertise behind them, each of the four family members plays a specific role, perpetuating tradition and sharing their passion: Lilian takes on the management of the Château, Michel takes care of the wine distribution, Mélanie is the technical manager and Damien brings his expertise to the commercialization of the wine. This Chateau produces 2 of the most renewed names in Bordeaux- Langoa Barton and Leoville Barton. Open PDF -
Chateau Viaud Lalande is a small-scale venture of the Durand – Teyssier family who have been making wine in the village of Puisseguin, appellation of Lalande de Pomerol, for three generations. 1.5 hectares of vineyards adjoining the Chateau were planted by Philippe Durand – Teyssier back in the 60’s. Typically for the region, those are mostly Merlot and Cabernet Franc well suited to the local, clay dominated soils. Since 2007 Philippe has handed over the wine making and day-to-day running of the property to his son Thomas. Having previously worked in prominent 1er and Grand Cru Classé estates in Saint Emilion (Château Belair, Château Cadet Bon), Thomas is continuing family tradition, with clear focus on quality. Annual production: 9000 bottles. -
Located within the AOC Bordeaux, the Vignoble de Gravelierhas 32 Ha of vines with an average age of 20 years. It is located on hillsides thus benefiting from a beautiful sunshine. The harvest is harvested at perfect maturity and vinified using the traditional method in stainless steel vats and aged in cement vats. The grape variety of the vineyard is composed of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet-Sauvignon. To present a quality wine, the yields and phytosanitary treatments are moderate. The foliage is kept as high as possible to obtain better maturity. With deep colour, classic structure and unusually ripe flavours, this is classic claret to serve with roast beef, duck or T-bone steak. A gourmet Bordeaux! -
The iconic, ivy-covered Château Lascombes is one of the most recognizable structures in all of Margaux. One would never expect this picturesque and secluded estate to have one of the largest vineyards in the Médoc. The vineyard is an astounding 120 hectares primarily located in Margaux; with 10 hectares in the Haut-Médoc appellation. With a staff of 36, one can imagine the harvest period on such a vast estate would be difficult to manage. Because of their access to state-of-the-art technology and some of the most desirable plots in Margaux, the viticultural team of Château Lascombes produces wines that continue to impress and receive critical acclaim. Château Lascombes earned its namesake after its owner, Antoine Chevalier de Lascombes in 1625. The estate was inherited from the Durfort de Duras family who also owned Château Durfort – later known as the famed Second Growth property, Château Durfort-Vivens. Château Lascombes was classified as a Second Growth estate in 1855, but its history really began when it was purchased almost a hundred years later. Alexis Lichine and a group of investors – including the wealthy American, David Rockefeller – purchased the estate in 1952. There is a diverse array of soil types at Château Lascombes. Gravelly outcroppings are planted with Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot. The property also has limestone terroir, which is highly unique to the Margaux region. It is the areas with clay and limestone where the primary varietal at Château Lascombes, Merlot, really shines. Château Lascombes has 50% of its vineyard planted with Merlot – an unusual choice for an estate in Margaux. The vines are on average 35 years old, and only 50-hectares of the sprawling vineyard are considered able to produce the wines of top Second Growth quality. The estate is presently managed by Dominique Befve, who brings his expertise from ten years as technical director at Château Lafite Rothschild and Duhart Milon. Upon his arrival, Dominique oversaw major technical innovations to the cellar. The cellar astonishes visitors with its signature blue lights and technologically advanced Oxoline racks. The racks rotate the barrels and keep the lees of the wine in suspension, reducing oxidation and making the wine round and more immediately accessible. Open at least 1 hour before tasting, this Margaux finesse will be preferred at the time of entry (meat) or on your cheese board (soft and hard pasta). -
With a very good structure and fine crimson colour, this Bordeaux Supérieur is a really pleasant wine to drink.The merlot dominant variety offers extraordinary fruitiness with mellow tannins resulting in supple wines that are easy to drink. The cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc gives a good structure to the wine. Aromas of tropical fruits and red fruits give a complex bouquet. All these features offer a wine that can be enjoyed with red meats and barbecues. -
Wines have been made at Château Macquin since 1885, when the first cellar was developed by François-Albert Macquin. François was the first to re-plant vines in the Saint-Émilion region following the phylloxera outbreak in the 19th century. Today, the Château is run by his grandson Denis and wife Christine Corre-Macquin, who own 27 hectares of vines in both Saint-Émilion and Pomerol. They are involved in every vine-growing and winemaking decision to ensure the high quality of their wine remains consistent every vintage. Château Macquin is located just three kilometres north of Saint-Émilion, in the small village of Saint-Georges, the smallest of all Bordeaux appellations (180 hectares). However, at its peak of 89 metres above sea level, Saint-Georges enjoys one of the best elevations on the right bank, giving the wines freshness and concentration. The south facing vines are planted on clay and limestone soils and range from 15 to 60 years old. The vines are sustainably farmed, without the use of herbicides, fertilisers, or other harmful chemicals. The outstanding weather conditions in August and subsequent Indian summer resulted in red wine grapes with a particularly high sugar content, satisfactory levels of tartaric acid and promising aromatic potential. The thick skins and concentration of tannins required meticulous care during extraction. The Merlot wines are deep and concentrated,while maintaining freshness in spite of their relatively high alcohol level. Enjoyed with Ratatouille, Tournedos, grilled lamb chops. -
Most of us know Roald Dahl's novels, I for one have read them countless times. Firstly to my eldest and now, once in while I try with the middle one, even though he is still a bit young for those books. He is only 4 my wife says! They are just fun to read. To my surprise, after deciding to bring Château Méaume Bordeaux Supérieur to our Pinto Wines portfolio I came across that it was Roald Dahl's favourite wine and per his own words ''simply delicious''. Well I could not put it better myself. It is a fantastic wine, with superb quality at this price point and what some would call a ''Big little wine.'' Unpretentious especially being French and carries a lot with it. It has a warm, expressive black fruits with a serious, rustic, spicy structure. A hint of exotic perfume on the nose, with a luscious, very ripe blackberry and damson palate.80% merlot, with cabernets franc and sauvignon adding a rich, chewy texture. Very more-ish, with freshness, and great balance.Château Méaume, owned by English couple Alan and Sue Johnson-Hill since 1980, is an historic property just 10 miles from the famous vineyards of St-Emilion and Pomerol. The 2016 Vintage is one of the best produced after the 2000's and critics were fast to praise the 2018. Cheers Roald! -
Malbec is the main grape in the legendary ‘Black wine of Cahors’. Way before Argentina made the varietal ‘famous’, Malbec – though in this region it is known as Côt or Auxerrois. – was making long-lived wines from Cahors – the 1959 Clos La Coutale is still drinking superbly. Clos La Coutale is a benchmark of the Cahors region and has a history of producing some of the finest and longest-lived wines of the region. Blackcurrants, blackberry's and prune notes followed by a soft and elegant palate that has an enticing note of vanilla. This Clos La Coutale wine is matured in barrels and wooden casks for one year in order to obtain a good balance between tannins and fruit. Organic and true gem at this price point. -
This is one of our favourite wine-finds of late! Priorat, a wine region in northeastern Spain, is known for stunning, terraced vineyards and robust red blends that often fetch a pretty penny. An old vine blend of Grenache, Carignan, Syrah, Cabernet and Merlot finished in French and American oak barrels. Notes of red cherry, chocolate define this silky & balanced wine! Lovely with Red meats, blue cheese or Chocolate. -
Thomas Lynch was a descendant of the Tribes of Galway. His father John emigrated in 1691 from Galway, Ireland to Bordeaux, inherited an estate in the village of Bages through his wife, Elizabeth, in 1749. This year represents the foundation of Château Lynch-Bages, which Thomas passed on to his son, Jean-Baptiste, upon his marriage in 1779. Jean-Baptiste soon handed over supervision to his brother Michel who maintained responsibility for the Bages estate until 1824, when the family sold it to a Swiss wine merchant, Sebastien Jurine, who had recently moved to Bordeaux. Château Lynch-Bages remained in the hands of the Jurine family, followed by the Cayrou family, for over a hundred years. In 1934, Jean-Charles Cazes rented the property from its then owner, Felix de Vial, subsequently purchasing it in 1938. After Jean-Charles Cazes’ death, aged 95, in 1972, the estate has been largely managed by his grandson, Jean-Michel Cazes.[2] In the late 1980s, the AXA Millésimes group began to develop a portfolio of wine property holdings, and approached Jean-Michel Cazes for help (Claude Bébéar, the AXA President, was a long-time Cazes family friend). They established Châteaux & Associés, which Cazes ran until he reached 65, and which by the end of the twentieth century owned many vineyards across Europe. Ownership of Château Lynch-Bages, however, remains with the Cazes family. In 2017, the Cazes family has acquired Château Haut-Batailley, the 1855 Grand Cru Classé estate in Pauillac. In the interest of sustainable development, agriculture is in every way reasoned: fertilization methods defined precisely and adapted to soil, optimized phytosanitary control, use of sexual confusion against worms of the bunch, controlled grassing of plots for control the vigor of the vine, prolonged rest of the soil by flowering fallow land … The use of neutral products for the environment is everywhere privileged. -
The red brother of Empire Strikes Back is EMPIRE - not striking back but just being himself. With Cabernet Sauvignon as driver and bits of Merlot and Cabernet Franc to compliment. The old style design label shows a combination crest. I combined the crest of Stellenbosch University and Elsenburg College - The 2 Empires when it comes to wine education - I studied at both... -
This wine celebrates a collaboration of many years between well-known Argentinian chef Francis Mallmann and Kaiken estate. Known for his distinct style of open fire cooking, ably captured in the first season of Netflix’s Chef’s Table, Mallman's unstoppable and unique nature is captured by the name 'Disobedience'. Kaikenes are wild geese, native to Patagonia, that fly across the Andes between Chile and Argentina. Montes, the Chilean winery, crossed the Andes in the same way to set up in Mendoza. Their vineyards are situated in the heart of Mendoza and further to the south in Valle de Uco, where many of the premium producers are now sourcing their fruit. The focus is primarily on Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon, a variety that has been somewhat forgotten as Malbec has surfed one wave of success after another in the past decade. Kaiken's own vineyards supply 70% of their production requirements and 30% is from vineyards that they control. The grapes are sourced from Kaiken's vineyards in Altamira in the Uco Valley and Vistalba in the Luján de Cuyo region. Vistalba's chalk and sandy soil, at 1,200m altitude, imparts an elegant and fruit-driven character to the wine.The alluvial and loam soil of the Luján de Cuyo forces vines to penetrate deep into the soil, contributing deep fruit concentration and tannin. As Francis Mallmann says, wine is a celebration. And this is a wine created to celebrate friendship, love, reunion... And celebrate an act of freedom, no one can decide how to do it. -
Our top wine is made with special care, from the blending of varieties from our best vineyards. Rich and lush fruitiness in the aroma, delicate elegance and beautiful balance in the taste. -
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Slender and racy length, beautiful smoothness, noble freshness, very fragrant, without weakness in terms of the body and with the extension of high quality terroirs. -
Perfectly ripened grapes are required to produce the soft texture of this delectable red wine. Unoaked, elegant and naturally easy drinking, it’s perfect with Mediterranean cuisine, grilled meats and roasted chicken. -
Meerlust Rubicon had a great impact on the history of South African wine. First made in 1980, it essentially set the pattern for Bordeaux blends in the country. There was of course a few pioners at this front that only used Cabernet Sauvignon varietal such as Kanonkop (Paul Sauer) in 1973 but as a blend as per Bordeaux style Meerlust changed the scene. According to Hannes Myburgh, his father was inspired by Julious Cesar words “Alea iacta est. The die is cast,” leading his troops towards Rome in 49BC. As this was a irreversable moment in history as there was no turning back after crossing the Rubicon river as this profoundly shifted Roman politics. Nico Myburgh from the 7th generation of the Meerlust estate and father of the current custodian, was holidaying in Bordeaux when he discovered that the terroir in this area of France was similar to that of the Eerste River Valley. Both have a distinctive climate, characterised by a cooling sea breeze. And both have a soil structure made up of decomposed granite and clay. The red wines produced by the two regions, however, were very different. Unlike the Western Cape’s specified cultivars, Bordeaux thrived on producing blends. Nico returned to Meerlust, filled with inspiration and the desire to create a blend of his own that would match those of the French. In 1980, after several years of experimentation together with winemaker Giorgio Dalla Cia, he announced the birth of the new blend. With proportions of 70% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc, a new style of wine had been created in South Africa. Like Caesar, there could be no turning back. Nico and Giorgio had already considered a number of names for the new blend when Professor Dirk Opperman from the University of Stellenbosch, a friend of Nico’s suggested that “Rubicon” might be appropriate. The pair had, after all, crossed a new frontier – and changed the way South Africans thought about red wine. The Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot vineyards are hand harvested from February through to March and each individual vineyard block is kept separate throughout the fermentation process and monitored until the moment of blending.In wintertime, after malolactic fermentation has allowed the personality of each vineyard to assert itself in barrel, the wines are carefully assessed to produce the most expressive, harmonious and complex wine. The blend is assembled and then allowed another year in barrel for the components to harmonise. The wine is finally bottled and left for a further 2 years before release. Rubicon is always released at four years of age and will immediately offer the distinctive character and quality of the Estate. However, further bottle maturation is advised for the intriguing complexity of this classic wine to unfold and reveal itself.The first vintage, the 1980, remains vivacious and very much alive, even 30+ years after vintage. Subsequent vintages all express the personality and characteristics of their specific year. All vintages of Rubicon, however, share the hallmarks of wines grown at this special place: intensity, harmony, vibrancy, complexity and individuality.I suppose we could use here ''Veni, vidi, vici'' -
Bordeaux Pierre Lurton is a wine produced by Pierre Lurton in his namesake wine cellars. He draws directly from his knowledge acquired in the most prestigious properties of Bordeaux. Thus, this wine is rigorously selected by Pierre Lurton.The colour of the label also reflects the classic colour of the mansions of Gironde´s capital. -
High on the hills of Austria there is more than just a lonely goat herd - there is also a fantastic winery, considered one of the country's best. Pittnauer has a long winemaking tradition in the region, and in 2006 moved to more biodynamic practices. The results are delicious, environmentally friendly wines with years of experience behind them. Now prepare yourself for some varieties you've probably never heard of - Pittnauer's Pitti Red Blend is made from blaufränkisch and Zweigelt grapes with a small quantity of Merlot added to the mixture. These varieties shine brightest in the Austrian climate, where they come together to make a stunningly delicious, full bodied wine reminiscent of spicy Shiraz. The ‘Pitti’ is a blend coming from vines that average 12-15 years in age and are planted on sandy clay mixed with limestone. Dark ruby in colour, the wine has tight tannins with black berries, cherries, cranberries and fresh acidic structure. Whispers of tobacco and liquorice. Ticks all the boxes of quality, drinkability and affordability and yumability. -
Family-owned winery Sequoia Grove was founded in 1979 in a 110-year old barn beneath a grove of Sequoia trees in Rutherford. Michael Trujillo joined the winery as assistant winemaker in 1981, becoming director of winemaking in 2002. His philosophy is based on balance in the vineyard, planting different blocks with different clones, and farming without pesticides. The family have been working with their partner growers for decades which gives them access to the very best quality fruit each year and allows them to create this complex wine which truly expresses the Rutherford terroir. The young wine is aged in oak barrel for 20 months which adds sweet spice notes and extra complexity to the finished bottling. The rich, powerful flavor profile makes this a winner with lovers of big, bold reds and a great match for red meats. Drink now through to 2030. Decanting is always recommended but is not a must -
Saint Auguste is a selection of the best cuvées of Syrah, Cabernet-Sauvignon and Merlot. The robe is rich dark purple with bright ruby highlights. It offers alluring aromas of ripe black cherries, nutmeg and clove. It is full and concentrated and is a wine that can be enjoyed upon release and over the following ten to fifteen years.
