Understand the grape
Getting to know the grape
Merlot ripens earlier than Cabernet Sauvignon, and the Bordeaux wine council describes its wines as supple, rounded and velvety, with generous alcohol and moderate acidity. Typical aromas are cherry, plum, fig and violet, with chocolate or coffee appearing as the wine ages. Tannin is the drying grip that comes from grape skins and seeds. Merlot can carry a lot of it in a dense Pomerol, but it usually feels softer than the tannin of Cabernet Sauvignon, which is why the two are so often blended.
Bordeaux labels name the place, not the grape. A bottle that says Pomerol or Saint-Émilion is understood to be mainly Merlot, usually with some Cabernet Franc. Outside France the grape is more often printed on the front. Merlot is the offspring of Cabernet Franc and a grape called Magdeleine Noire des Charentes, so Cabernet Franc is a parent and a blending partner at once. The name is linked to merle, French for blackbird, a reference to the dark colour of the berries.
Where Merlot changes
Grape to place
Compare how the grape grows and tastes in these places. Each guide explains the local wines; the Atlas shows where they come from.
Libournais
Pomerol is a small Bordeaux appellation of 813 hectares, with Merlot on about 80 per cent of its vines, Cabernet Franc on about 15 and Cabernet Sauvignon on about 5. Its soils are clay and gravel over an iron-rich subsoil known locally as crasse de fer. Saint-Émilion is also led by Merlot with Cabernet Franc as its usual partner, but its vines grow on a limestone plateau, clay-limestone slopes and sandy gravel ground by the Dordogne.
Bolgheri & Etruscan Coast
On the Tyrrhenian coast, the Bolgheri rules let Merlot make up anything from none to all of a Rosso, alongside Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and limited amounts of Syrah and Sangiovese. The label names the place, not the grape, so the blend depends on the producer. Further south in Suvereto, Tua Rita makes Redigaffi from Merlot alone.
Columbia Valley
The Washington State Wine Commission names Yakima Valley, Horse Heaven Hills and Wahluke Slope as the areas where Merlot is most concentrated, and counts it among the five varieties that make up over 80 per cent of the state's annual production. All three areas lie inside the Columbia Valley AVA, or American Viticultural Area, so the wine often says Columbia Valley on the label.
Central Valley
Wines of Chile says Merlot reached Chile from Bordeaux in the mid-nineteenth century but was not truly popular until the early 1990s. It is a key red in Maipo, part of the red mix in Cachapoal with Carménère and Cabernet Sauvignon, and grows well in Maule. Carménère was later found growing among Merlot vines, so older plantings may hold both grapes.
Villány
Hungary's southernmost wine district is a good place to taste Merlot beside Cabernet Franc. French grapes arrived after phylloxera, and after the Second World War Merlot was planted widely beside Kékfrankos, Zweigelt and the Cabernets. For a prémium wine the grapes must reach at least 12.83 per cent potential alcohol, and yields are capped at 8.5 tonnes per hectare.
What changes the result
Vineyard and cellar
The ripeness of the grapes, contact with their skins, and time in tanks or barrels all help shape the wine. Here is what to look for.
Picking date
Merlot ripens early. The Bordeaux wine council places its harvest ahead of Cabernet Franc and well ahead of Cabernet Sauvignon. Growers who pick sooner keep more freshness and red fruit, while later picking gives riper, plummier flavours and more alcohol. The same grape can taste quite different from one vintage to the next.
Blending
In Bordeaux, Cabernet Sauvignon adds structure and a tannic backbone to Merlot, while Cabernet Franc adds freshness and perfume. Pomerol leans heavily on Merlot, with Cabernet Franc and a little Cabernet Sauvignon. In Bolgheri the rules leave the proportions open, so producers choose their own mix.
Oak
Pomerol wines are aged for 12 to 18 months in oak barrels. New oak adds vanilla, toast and a sweet-smelling edge, while older barrels leave the fruit more open. Merlot's soft texture takes oak easily, so check whether the plum and cherry still come through the wood.
Lower yields
Appellation rules cap how much fruit a hectare may carry. Villány allows up to 14 tonnes per hectare for its base tier and 8.5 for prémium. Bolgheri Rosso is limited to 9 tonnes and Bolgheri Superiore to 8. Fewer bunches per vine may give more concentrated fruit, but site, vintage and picking date matter as much.
Rosé and sparkling
The Bordeaux wine council notes that Merlot is also made into rosé and, more occasionally, a white sparkling Crémant from dark grapes, known as blanc de noirs. These are far less common than the red wines.
Read the label
On the bottle
A label may name the place instead of the grape. These names and terms help you work out what is in the bottle.
- Pomerol
- A red wine appellation in Bordeaux, east of the city on the right bank of the Dordogne. The label names the place and usually not the grape, but Merlot is the main variety. It is one of Bordeaux's smallest appellations.
- Saint-Émilion and Saint-Émilion Grand Cru
- Two appellations around the town of Saint-Émilion. Grand Cru is a tier of the appellation with lower permitted yields and at least 10 months of ageing. Grand Cru Classé is a different thing: a rank given to named estates in a separate classification, which listed 85 châteaux in 2022.
- Bolgheri Rosso and Bolgheri Superiore
- Red wines from the coast of Toscana. Merlot may be present in any proportion, so the grape is rarely stated. Superiore has lower yields and needs at least two years of ageing, one of them in oak.
- Villányi, Villányi classicus and Villányi prémium
- Three tiers of the Villány appellation in Hungary. They are set by yield, and prémium also needs higher grape ripeness. Merlot and Cabernet Franc are both among the grapes used.
- Carménère
- A different red grape that was found growing among Merlot vines in Chile. Some older Chilean plantings were therefore a mixture, so look at which grape the label names.
At the table and in the cellar
Practical use
Serve
Serve Merlot at about 15 to 17°C in a medium-bowled glass. A light, fruity bottle can take a little chilling, while a dense Pomerol is better a touch warmer, since cold makes its tannin feel harder.
Eat
Soft tannin and ripe fruit suit savoury dishes with some richness. Shepherd's pie, roast duck and mushroom lasagne all work, as do roast pork and lentil stew. Very hot chilli can make the alcohol feel stronger, so keep spicing gentle.
Keep
Most Merlot is made to drink within about five years of the vintage, while the plum and cherry fruit is clear. The Bordeaux wine council suggests five to ten years in the cellar for Pomerol, and the top wines can last for decades.
Taste it in three steps
Three bottles
You can try these bottles on separate occasions. Keep a note of the name, vintage and what you notice, then use the steps below to decide what to compare.
- 01
Start with Merlot-led Bordeaux
Taste a Pomerol or Saint-Émilion. Notice the plum, violet and soft tannin, and then how much structure the wine has compared with a fruity everyday red.
- 02
Compare Washington Merlot
Open a Columbia Valley Merlot beside it. The grape is on the label, so you can compare ripeness, alcohol and oak without having to decode a place name.
- 03
Taste a parent grape
Finish with a Chinon, made from Cabernet Franc. It is usually paler, fresher and more herbal than Merlot, which shows what one parent brings to the blend.