Merryvale, Napa Valley, Profile 2006 The nose features sweet new oak, bay leaves, fresh cherries and cherry pie. In the mouth the wine is dense and tightly wound – just packed with flavor. There’s lots of cherry fruit accented by vanilla and ripe tannins. The palate is completely filled in and the length is great, with the acidity carrying the cherry flavors for a long time. While this wine is approachable now it would certainly benefit from a nice sleep in the cellar.
The grapes behind this Bordeaux blend are 82% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot and 1% Cabernet Franc. The wine was aged for 25 months in French oak, 90% of which was new. 14.9% $135 at the winery for a 750ml and $330 for a magnum.
We tasted the new release of Profile from one of the magnums released this fall with viticulturalist Remi Cohen. She led my Napa Appellations class through a tasting of the many components that are available when creating such a blend, including wines from Calistoga, St. Helena, Oakville, Oak Knoll and an area known as the Suscol Bench.
