Reininger, Merlot 2012, Walla Walla Valley, Washington

Tasting Note: A merlot with intensity, depth and character that will remind you why America fell in love with the grape twenty-five years ago.

Deep-intensity purple in color, this wine has an aromatic nose of black plum, red currant, bramble, fresh raspberry and violet.

On the palate the dry, medium-plus-bodied merlot delivers concentrated black-fruit flavors suggested on the nose, supported by medium acidity and ripe, slightly-grippy, medium-plus tannin.

There is midpalate complexity and balance between fruit and tannin structure.

Yum.

Bottle Note: Cataclysmic geological events, including the Earth’s largest basaltic lava flows and the Earth’s largest glacial floods, have shaped the Walla Walla Valley into one of the world’s premier wine regions. Reininger wines focus on this beautiful valley that surrenders its benevolent complexities to the soil penetrating vine. Enjoy the pleasure of savoring complexities! – Chuck Reininger, Winemaker