That was fun to watch. You are rarely caught speechless! You’ve been on such a roll lately it was time for everything to go wrong for you. Still a great show as always. I would like to see you try another bottle of that corked wine in the near future if possible.

QOTD: Best merlot: 2005 Pride vineyard napa, sonoma (this is actually one of the best wines I’ve had from any varietal period)
Worst merlot: 2003 Dynamite vineyards (this is one of the worst wines I’ve ever had. I was so angry with the winery I wrote them a letter telling them how jacked it was that they charged so much for such a crappy wine)

Great show, I think you should open another bottle of the Woodward Canyon.
QOTD: Best, Leonetti and Long Shadows Pedestal.
Worst: Most of the Merlot that they sell at Trader Joes, esp 2(3)Buck Chuck.

All I know is I’ve had a lot worse Pinots then Merlots

QOTD: Best QPR Merlot is 2005 Red Diamond (WA); Worst Merlot would be 2005 Trader Joe’s Coastal

You lumped bad wine, corked wine and technical difficulties into one show, so smooth sailing for awhile.

QOTD: Best QPR Merlot is 2005 Red Diamond (WA); Worst Merlot would be 2005 Trader Joe’s Coastal

You lumped bad wine, corked wine and technical difficulties into one show, so smooth sailing for awhile.

You need to find the silver lining, now that you’ve gotten the train wreck out of the way. Smooth sailing from here 🙂

Actually I didn’t think the episode was bad at all. The wines are what they are. We can learn as much if not more from what doesn’t work as from what does.

QOTD: I like merlot but now that I think about it I haven’t had any in a long time. Strange. Guess I know what I am adding to the weekend shopping.

Many comments today!
1. I got a real kick out of the beginning- I watched it at least 4 times!
2. Yes, love the blind episodes BUT
3. Please keep the tags with the unveilings, not with the zoomy-zoom. This seems to vary between blind tastings, but the suspense is much better when they’re at the end!
4. I haven’t seen every episode of WLTV yet, but this is the first quarked wine in the couple hundred I’ve seen!
5. Thanks for the reply today on Twitter! It was surprising how many new followers I got shortly afterward; coincidence? Maybe, maybe not.

QOTD: I honestly have a very hard time finding a merlot I like, and it has nothing to do with Hollywood. Easily the worse I’ve recently had was the 2006 Turning Leaf Reserve.

Lurker here, just wanted to say I love all the shows Gary. The blind tastings are always great to watch, even todays. A bunch of bad wines can actually be just as interesting as 6 great ones!

Will be sure to comment more in the future, Thanks!

Just had a Sebastiani 2002 Merlot this evening was very good

I enjoyed the Merlot show! Even though the wines failed for the most part it was fun to see the earnest style of tasting — now I have to synchronize my palate with Gary’s in order to understand how we agree (or not.) One more thing — it’d be nice to know if there’s something else out there that Gary recommends when the majority of the varietal tasted fails.

Love the show, but rarely have time to watch them “live” and comment, so I guess that makes me a lurker. The blind tastings are the best, keep them coming.

Merlot is definitely the David Clowney in my read progression on the wine list, but I’ve found a few I like.

QOTD: The best Merlot I’ve had in a long time was the Verasion Merlot.

Love the show, but rarely have time to watch them “live” and comment, so I guess that makes me a lurker. The blind tastings are the best, keep them coming.

Merlot is definitely the David Clowney in my read progression on the wine list, but I’ve found a few I like.

QOTD: The best Merlot I’ve had in a long time was the Verasion Merlot.

Oh yeah, almost forgot, I love the blind episodes! Just wish I didn’t see the wine in the status bar notes for this one.

Hehe, I was so confused in the beginning on what I did wrong to the sound on my comp. It didn’t help that the moment it was corrected was the same moment when I was messing with stuff 😀 If you hadn’t said anything I would’ve thought it was me.

So, I’m not much of a merlot girl myself, and because of this, I make a point of it to try merlots and attempt to expand my appreciation for them. The ones I have really enjoyed are few and far between, but that Duckhorn sounds like something I will have to go taste. I’ll give you an update when I do! As for the question of the day:
Best – Pine Ridge Crimson Creek Merlot 2006 from Napa Valley. On the nose, I got cherry sour balls, the kind you buy at Disneyland in a severely overpriced souvenir package. I got fun, fruity flavors on the palate, including red currant and fresh, cooking cranberries. It has a delightful finish of dark chocolate espresso mocha. It’s totally my style.
Worst – Charles Shaw Merlot 2003. Gross, gross, and gross, but not a surprise, I guess. Someone brought it to my friend’s party, and my original tasting notes make mention of aromas of litterbox, rotten oranges, and old tires. Not tasty.

So, I’m not much of a merlot girl myself, and because of this, I make a point of it to try merlots and attempt to expand my appreciation for them. The ones I have really enjoyed are few and far between, but that Duckhorn sounds like something I will have to go taste. I’ll give you an update when I do! As for the question of the day:
Best – Pine Ridge Crimson Creek Merlot 2006 from Napa Valley. On the nose, I got cherry sour balls, the kind you buy at Disneyland in a severely overpriced souvenir package. I got fun, fruity flavors on the palate, including red currant and fresh, cooking cranberries. It has a delightful finish of dark chocolate espresso mocha. It’s totally my style.
Worst – Charles Shaw Merlot 2003. Gross, gross, and gross, but not a surprise, I guess. Someone brought it to my friend’s party, and my original tasting notes make mention of aromas of litterbox, rotten oranges, and old tires. Not tasty.

GV, you really should take into account the peeps who are watching your show on portable devices and such…I’ve recently starting watching at home, but until now I’ve watched you at work on my iphone. Just because I didn’t run home and leave a comment, doesn’t make me less of a fan.

I’m glad you said you’re a fan of Robert Karl because I have had some wines of his that have ripped my face off-in a good way.
I’ve also previously enjoyed the Flying Fish, but I think the prior vintage was better.

QOTD: I can’t remember my favorite, but I enjoy Washington Merlots quite a bit, especially if they have a mocha component.

ps…I hate to be critical, but you do “call a spade a spade” quite a bit.

Thanks,

I love the blind tastings!!

Jeff

Yo G, just went to da Vault & found a Columbia Crest Grand Estate 2001
Merlot (a measly 9 bones). YUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!
One of da BEST 9 Bone Vinos I’ve ever had!!!!

You never know what’s going to happen on your show. That’s what keeps me coming back.

QOTD:

Best – Raymond Reserve and Chateau St. Michelle Indian Wells.

Worst – Oak Ridge – dumped the whole bottle.

Gary, the J-Lo description, and the curved handmovement, was spectacular. That made a funky show worth the price of admission …

I really like the blind tastings. They help emphasize the point that you continually make that everyone’s palate is different and we shouldn’t listen to any critic (including you), especially when you and Robert Parker are so different in your ratings.

QOTD: I don’t drink Merlot, not because of Hollywood, but because most red wines give me an instant headache.

Gary check out Episode #171 Merlot- Why Such a Bad Rap? ? . Although you not as disappointing as this Merlot episode, you also came out dejected. Is Heidi Barret right? Is Merlot is a 3 or 4 type of grape?

The best Merlot I have had is the Chateau St. Michelle 2005 rated 90 points by WS. The worst is Blackstone: I associate it with any cheap and pretentious country club chick.

QOTD: Worst Merlot? Probably something I picked up for $5 or so when I first started to drink wine. Recent memory? It was boxed Australian wine…but I can’t remember the producer. Best? Definitely something from Bordeaux, although we’re getting into blends. Varietally speaking? Probably a wine from the Okanagan.

Love the blind tasting, btw. Even when you have an oh for 😉

QOTD: best in recent memory… ’05 chateau vieux pourret
worst… whatever over oaked generic cali wine

Love the blind tasting shows. What a shame for Merlot. Grab another bottle of the corked wine and taste it next time you get a chance. Also, loving the HD stream.

QOTD: Worst: Ecco Domani Best: Can’t think of one I enjoyed off hand.

Hi Gary. I’ve been lurking for a long time. I really enjoy the show. I will now make up for the lurking with a very long post. 🙂

I ACTUALLY DON’T DRINK WINE. I am repulsed by all forms of alcohol (tastes like poison to me and I have no interest in “acquiring” the taste), but I do all the shopping in my household, so I want to know what to buy for my hubby and our friends.

For the last year I have been obsessed, for some strange reason, with trying to learn as much as I can about wine. Your show has been very informative and entertaining. Sometimes I watch on your site and sometimes on podcast.

I’m a bargain shopper, so I’m always looking for the best stuff I can get for around $10, definitely less than $20. It has been a lot of fun for me to have my husband try all kinds of wines to expand his palate. He used to really enjoy Bogle Merlot when I started this kick, but now he doesn’t like it as much. It definitely seems difficult to find good Merlot in my price range.

I’m hoping to catch a screening some time of the movie, “Merlove” which seems relevant to this episode. Just waiting for it to come to Orange County, CA.

I am very tempted to order some of that 2005 Domaine De L’hortus Grand Cuvee Rouge that you hyped a few episodes ago, but it just kills me to pay that much in shipping charges!!

I do most of my shopping at Wine Exchange in Orange, CA, but they don’t have that one (the L’Hortus). Those guys are pretty cool and they have great customer service. They also have these cool machines that dispense 24 different wines by the ounce, so one can try a lot of different wines for not a lot of money. I have been taking my husband and friends there to do just that and it’s been great fun. I take notes in my wine notebook. I’m such a nerd, but I don’t care.

I sometimes also shop at Hi Time Wine Cellars in Costa Mesa, CA. They don’t have the 2005 Domaine De L’Hortus Grand Cuvee Rouge, either, but they do have the 2007 Domaine De L’Hortus Cuvee Classique, so I think we’ll try that first. If my husband loves it, then I just might order the 2005 Cuvee Rouge from you and suck up those shipping charges!

Thanks for doing the show! I definitely look forward to seeing new episodes. I’m also probably going to buy your book when it comes out this fall. Cheers to you!