Luscious, velvety, approachable, little wonder Merlot has an entire day dedicated to its many merits. International Merlot Day takes place annually on 7 November, inviting relaxed wine lovers and serious oenophiles alike to take the time to relish this big Bordeaux varietal. Of course, dedicated Merlot lovers will need little encouragement to open a bottle containing their favourite tipple.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
For those not yet familiar with Merlot, it is pronounced mehr-low, with a suitably French affectation. But it is difficult to imagine not having heard of this popular grape before, considering that there are more Merlot grapes planted in Bordeaux \u2013 and the whole of France \u2013 than Cabernet Sauvignon!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Merlot is grown and enjoyed across the wine-drinking world. Some prefer a 100% Merlot wine, but Merlot is beautiful in blends too. This is because it has a soft appeal and texture due to the fact that it\u2019s not heavy on tannins.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
One wine estate that has perfected Bordeaux-styled blends is De Toren, a small yet powerful estate in Stellenbosch, South Africa, that is known for producing some of the most luxurious wines in the world. Like the ruby-hued De Toren Z, which benefits from ocean-facing vineyards that are high in clay content, making them intensely suited to the planting of Merlot \u2013 echoing Bordeaux\u2019s Right Bank approach. All \u201cNoble Five\u201d Bordeaux varietals are featured in the De Toren Z, but Merlot is dominant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A uniquely South African rendering of the Bordeaux style, produced on a mere 22 hectares situated on Stellenbosch\u2019s Polkadraai Hills, this Merlot-rich red wine has garnered plenty of international attention since its maiden vintage. At Mundus Vini 2012, the international judging panel reviewed 6000 wines, yet awarded the De Toren Z 2010 vintage the coveted Gold.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This year, the reputed UK wine critic Tim Atkin reviewed Z at 93\/100 points, while the USA\u2019s respected Wine Enthusiast Magazine scored it at 91\/100 points. If you\u2019re intent on celebrating Merlot this International Merlot Day, then why not celebrate it with its very best expression?<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
International Merlot Day takes place annually on 7 November, inviting relaxed wine lovers and serious oenophiles alike to take the time to relish this big Bordeaux varietal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":1791,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1790","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-food-wine"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1790","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1790"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1790\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1792,"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1790\/revisions\/1792"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1791"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1790"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1790"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/atableforone.co.za\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1790"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}