"Odedi"

9.0

Château La Clotte de Jouanin Rouge 2018, Bordeaux, France

It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday.

Deep dark ruby, almost Inky in color, with a reddish rim.

Nose of plums, fresh cherries, earth, eucalyptus, spices and dark chocolates.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate with cherries, raspberries, plums, currants, spices, tobacco leaf, dark coffee, earth, light vegetables, herbs and peppercorn.

Tangy finish with soft tannins and cranberries.

This is a very enjoyable Merlot based blend from Bordeaux. A nice entry level wine from this winery. Showing nice complexity and good balance.

Drinking very nicely now, and will continue to drink nicely in the next 7 years.

Soft and smooth. Easy drinking right out of the bottle, and gets earthier as it opens up (1 hour).

A good food wine that I paired with a Charcuterie board of meats and cheeses.

A blend of 75% Merlot and 25% Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged for 18 months in stainless steel vats and concrete tanks.

14.5% alcohol by volume.

90 points.

$24. — 3 days ago

"Odedi"

9.1

It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday.

Dark ruby in color with a short reddish rim.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate with nice complexity.

Showing currents, plums, cherries, oak, wet leaves, herbs, black pepper, tobacco leaf, earth, dark coffee and black tea.

Short finish with fine grained tannins and tangy raspberries.

This 26 year old Merlot is still drinking very nicely. Showing a nice mouthfeel with nice complexity.

Will continue to drink nicely in the next 5 to 7 years, but will not improve from here on.

Needs an hour to open up properly, so be patient.

This was not a good vintage in Pomerol, but it held up pretty well.

Good by itself or with food.

A blend of mostly Merlot with Cabernet Franc. Aged in French oak barrels for 18 months.

12.5% alcohol by volume.

91 points.

$250. — 5 months ago

"Odedi"

8.8

It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday. Let's bring Merlot back!

Dark ruby in color.

Dry on the palate and bold.

Full bodied with medium plus acidity.

Showing red fruits with earth, tobacco leaf, herbs and green vegetables.

Big tannins on the finish with raspberries.

This 9 year old is a little unbalanced. I expected more complexity at this point, but I didn't get much.

Might need a few years in the bottle to mature properly.

Very drinkable and better with food. Paired nicely with fresh pizza with prosciutto and arugula.

13% alcohol by volume.

88 points.

$35. — 8 months ago

"Odedi"

9.0

It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday. Let's bring Merlot back!

Dark ruby in color with a short reddish rim.

Medium-bodied with medium plus acidity.

Dry on the palate with mild complexity.

Showing cherries, blueberries, light oak, earth, light vanilla, vegetables, herbs and black pepper.

Short finish with medium tannins and raspberries.

This 4 year old is still young and needs three to five years in the bottle to mature properly, but already drinking nicely.

Needs a couple of hours to open up properly.

Robert Parker 90 points.

A good everyday wine, good by itself and better with food.

A blend of of 86% Merlot, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon and 1% Cabernet Franc. Aged in (20% new) French Oak barrels for almost a year.

13.5% alcohol by volume.

90 points.

$30. — 2 months ago

"Odedi"

8.8

It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday.

Dark ruby in color with a wide cloudy reddish/ brick rim.

Medium plus in body with medium plus acidity.

Very dry on the palate with raspberries, cherries, spices, light oak, licorice, dark chocolates, tobacco leaf, earth, herbs, wet leaves and peppercorn.

Short finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cranberries.

This is a very interesting Merlot from Pomerol. Probably not at its peak any longer, but still drinking nicely. A little unbalanced, though.

Feels younger than it is, and the cork looks suspiciously too fresh.

Good right out of the bottle, and better after 30 minutes of airtime.

This 27-year-old is tangy and spicy. Always nice to drink these kind of old wines.

Paired nicely with the Brie cheese.

A blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Aged in new French oak barrels for over a year.

13% alcohol by volume.

88 points.

$95 (current vintage). — 6 months ago

"Odedi"

9.3

It's time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday.

Deep Inky in color with a very short purple rim. Not showing age at all.

Strong fruity nose with blackberries, black plums, black currants, light cedar, figs, stewed cherries, licorice, spices, light earth, tobacco leaf, herbs, chocolates and black pepper.

Full bodied and elegant with medium acidity.

Dry and fruity on the palate with blackberries, plums, cooked cherries, cedar, light vanilla, tobacco, chocolates, peppercorn, earth, herbs, spices, pencil lead, licorice and diet cola.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cherries.

This is a great Napa Merlot with a touch of right bank Bordeaux. Nicely balanced with a soft mouthfeel.

Elegant and fruity. Spicy and interesting. Rich and tangy.

Good right out of the bottle, and better after 2 hours of airtime.

Good by itself as a sipping wine. Delicious stuff.

14.1% alcohol by volume.

93 points.

$100. — 7 months ago

"Odedi"

8.7

It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday. Let's bring Merlot back!

A pretty color of ruby with a wide reddish rim.

Fruity nose with black fruits and chocolates.

Full bodied with medium acidity.

Dry and fruit forward on the palate, and simple.

Showing black plums, cooked cherries, spices, light oak, licorice, peppercorn and light herbs.

Spicy finish with soft tannins and raspberries.

This 3 year old Merlot is drinking nicely now. Spicy and good by itself or with food.

Nothing special, but very drinkable.
Peaking now.

I paired it with steak and grilled vegetables.

Aged in oak barrels for 8 months. Kosher.

13.5% alcohol by volume.

87 Points.

$17. — 4 months ago

"Odedi"

9.6

It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday. Let's bring Merlot back!

Deep ruby, almost Inky in color, with a very short purplish rim.

Beautiful nose of blackberries, black plums, red cherries, tobacco, light vanilla, spices, cedar, herbs, light earth, chocolates, black pepper and eucalyptus. What a gorgeous nose.

Full-bodied, smooth and elegant, with medium acidity and long legs.

Dry on the palate with black plums, black cherries, earth, tobacco, cedar, vanilla, licorice, spices, chocolates, herbs, leather and black pepper.

Long finish with fine grained tannins and tangy cherries.

This is a gorgeous Merlot from Napa Valley. Rich, extracted and elegant. Well balanced and fruit forward.

This 7-year-old is drinking very nicely now, and will continue to age nicely in the next 10 to 15 years.

Nicely balanced with a gorgeous mouthfeel. Not in your face kind of wine, which I really appreciate.

Good right out of the bottle, and better after an hour of airtime, but I did not decant it. As it opens up, more red fruits show up. Really nice, tangy and interesting.

I've had it a few times before, and it is always special. One of the best Merlos for my palate.

Thank you Scott for sharing this with me.

Good by itself or with food, and will pair nicely with a nice piece of steak. I tried it with the French Brie, but it did not work out too well. Much better with the dried meats.

A blend of 96% Merlot with tiny amounts of Malbec and Cabernet Sauvignon. Aged in (85% new) French Oak barrels for 20 months.

14.9% alcohol by volume.

96 points.

$120. — 5 months ago

"Odedi"

9.0

It is time for some Merlot on this #MerlotThursday. Let's bring Merlot back!

Ruby in color with a wide brick rim.

Full bodied and elegant with medium acidity.

Dry on the palate with nice complexity and a soft mouthfeel.

Showing black and red fruits with tobacco, chocolates, coffee, oak, light vanilla, spices and black pepper.

Tangy finish with fine grained tannins and cranberries.

This is a very enjoyable Merlot blend from Bordeaux. I've had different vintages of this wine, and it is very consistent.

This 11 year old needs 2 hours to open up properly, so be patient.

A good food wine that will pair nicely with grilled meats.

A blend of 50% Merlot and 50% Cabernet Franc.

13% alcohol by volume.

90 points.

$40. — 7 months ago

"Odedi"

9.1

It's time for some Merlot on this#MerlotThursday. Let's bring Merlot back!

This 23-year-old Merlot based Bordeaux is still drinking very nicely.

Medium plus in body with medium acidity and long legs.

Very dry on the palate with a nice mouthfeel.

Showing black plums, cooked cherries, oak, herbs, vanilla, licorice, spices, tobacco leaf, peppercorn, pencil lead, dark coffee, dark chocolates, earth and wet leaves.

Medium plus in length on the finish, with fine grained tannins and tangy raspberries.

This is a very tasty wine from the great 2000 vintage in Bordeaux. Will continue to drink nicely in the next 5 to 10 years.

Showing nice complexity, soft and smooth.

Lost some of the fruits by now, but still very enjoyable by itself, and even better with food.

13% alcohol by volume.

91 points.

$200. — 8 months ago