2021 Family Reserve Merlot
Item No. 1023933477  •  In Stock - Ships in 2-3 Business Days

2021 Family Reserve Merlot
2021 Family Reserve Merlot

Aromas of dark cherries and spice with flavors of plum and spice on the palate.

$54.99club price: $43.99
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DESCRIPTION:

This beautifully crafted Merlot wine offers a perfect balance of dry and medium-bodied characteristics. It is known for its cherry fruit flavors that tantalize the taste buds, making it a delightful choice for wine enthusiasts in search of the best merlot. This luxurious merlot red wine displays a multitude of layers of aroma and flavor such as plum, cherries, spice and subtle floral notes, making it a complex and rich experience.

Characterized by moderate acidity, this enjoyable wine provides a fresh and lively feel on the palate. The tannins are soft, yet present, and they perfectly integrate with the other flavors, giving the wine a well-rounded and smooth finish.  


WINE MAKING NOTES:

Grape Blend: 81% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Petite Sirah

TA: 5.4 gm/L  |  PH: 3.76 |  RS: 0.543 |  Alcohol: 14.5%

Fermentation: open ferment  |  Oak: American and French  | Oak age: 20 months  |  Harvest Brix: 24.6 (average)  |  Bottle Date: June 27, 2023  |  Cases Produced: 384  |  Maturity: now until 2025


PAIRING SUGGESTIONS:

This Merlot will pair well with Cuban sandwiches served with black beans and rice or Moroccan kabob dishes. 


FLAVORS AND AROMAS:

Flavors of tart cherries, plums and layered with spice. The wine displays aromas of oak spice, vanilla and tobacco. 


VINEYARD NOTES:

The Merlot was planted two years after Wilson Creek was established in 2000. Merlot is used to make our Merlot wine as well as blended into Meritage and Cabernet Sauvignon for its aromatic characteristics.

Block 13- Merlot is located on the top western edge of the vineyard.  The Merlot block is our highest section of the vineyard gradually rising to a small hill at its center. This hilltop is where you will find Merlot Mesa. Just under 3 acres were planted.


WINEMAKER - Kestutis Vizgirda

Kestutis "Gus" Vizgirda believes the secret to good winemaking begins in the vineyard. That's why throughout the growing season you will find him touring the rows of varietals and envisioning the kinds of wines he will produce from the harvest.  For over two decades, Vizgirda has worked at several local wineries, working with some of the Valley's best winemakers to refine his craft. Today, he has developed his own unique approach to making wine and has won gold medals for several of his varietals.

In addition to serving as Wilson Creek's Winemaker, Vizgirda teaches wine classes at Mt. San Jacinto College and San Diego State University Extended Studies campus. He is also a judge at several local and international wine competitions.


WINEMAKER Kristina Fillippi

A lifelong resident of Southern California, Kristina Filippi grew up in the cradle of California’s winegrowing origins, the Cucamonga Valley. While attending college Kristina was hired to work in the winery tasting room at Joseph Filippi Winery in Rancho Cucamonga while she simultaneously attended Cal Poly Pomona and received a bachelor’s degree in Behavioral Science. It was during this time that she discovered her passion for wine and food pairing as well as the winemaking process. She soon enrolled in and graduated from the Le Cordon Bleu Culinary Arts program and went on to work at The Mission Inn Restaurant and Duane’s Prime Steaks and Seafood at the Historic Mission Inn in downtown Riverside.

While following her culinary aspirations, Kristina continued to work part time at the winery, and began to help with harvest cellar tasks whenever she could.  In 2008, she was invited by the Filippi family to learn the winemaking process from the ground up and she jumped at the opportunity to turn her passion for wine into a career. She trained with enologist Tish Cooper and was advised by consultants Dr. Fred S. Nury, Emeritus Professor of Enology and Food Science at Cal State University Fresno, as well as retired winemaker and vintner Rene Biane. In the 10 years that she served as winemaker for Joseph Filippi Winery, she enjoyed working with grapes from vines that were over 100 years old, including Alicante Bouschet, Mission, Palomino, Pedro Ximenez, and Zinfandel varieties, as well as various varietals from younger vineyards, including Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, and Petite Sirah. Old-world winemaking traditions have greatly influenced her style, focusing on the idea of “less is more” while taking care to preserve the true character and expression of each varietal and its terroir. Kristina’s wines have earned gold medals and 90+ ratings, a couple of which include Double Gold and Best in Class for her Petite Sirah, and her Super Tuscan style red blend, Velluto which earned 91 pts from Wine Enthusiast.

Kristina’s own family has viticultural roots in Southern California related to the San Gabriel Valley that reach back to 1784, and she moved here to Temecula in 2019 with hopes of getting in touch with those roots by learning more about the viticultural side of winemaking.  Prior to joining us here at Wilson Creek, she spent the last two years working in and managing vineyards in Temecula. We are extremely excited to have her as a part of our team and we know she will create some amazing wines for our winery.