Meritage Wine Management

12/08/2023

The #1 Wine of the year and the full Top 50 Wines of 2023 are posted on our website! Check them out through the link here!

Each year, we take a look back at some of the most memorable wines and vintages from the year. This year's top 50 is full of beautiful wines from all around the world that will impress any palate!

12/01/2023

The #2 Wine of the Year

2019 Miner Family, Merlot Stagecoach Vineyard, Napa Valley, California
94 Points - $50

100% Stagecoach fruit from the volcanic soils on Atlas Peak. Aged in 55% new French oak for 21 months.
Scents of dark cherry, plum and blackberry come woven with notes of spice, herbs, cocoa, suede, toast, graham, pencil shavings, and earth.

On the palate this medium-plus bodied wine comes packed with intensity and precision, a core of fruit that just hangs on the midpalate, powdery-fine tannins, and well-balanced acidity. Deep flavors of blackberry, dark cherry, plum and cassis come in tow with spice, herbs, cocoa powder, graham, No. 2 pencil, vanilla, toasted oak and earth. The finish is long and persistent.
What a fantastic showing from Miner on this Merlot from an iconic vineyard. So sleek.

11/29/2023

We have reached the Top 3 Wines of the Year. Tomorrow, we reveal the #2 Wine, and on December 1st, we will announce the #1 Wine of the Year and the entire TOP 50 Wines of 2022 on our website (link in bio).

The #3 Wine of the Year is:
2020 Bodega Bouza, Tannat A6 Parcela Unica, Canelones, Urugay
94 Points - $55

There is so much to say about this wine I could go on forever but here are the highlights:
Extremely small production (520 cases produced) - 100% old vine Tannat from a single plot within a single vineyard in Uruguay - From the top producer and the most critically acclaimed - Bouza’s Winemaker, Dr. Eduardo Boido, is considered Uruguay’s (and beyond) authority on all things Tannat - Rich, balanced and memorable. Guildsomm has featured this wine numerous times in tastings and also has written several articles featuring Bouza.

And now for the descriptors: This wine is massive in all areas, dense and voluminous with a weight that comes balanced by freshness and structured acidity. Well-endowed with oak as this wine spent 17 months in 100% new French and American oak barrels, The tannins while imposing and masculine are extremely well polished. This wine shows a smoky spiced edge to the notes of quince marmalade, plum, velour, herbs and vanilla. The finish builds to the crescendo that leaves you wanting more. This wine begs for a grilled tomahawk steak!

11/28/2023

I present you with the #4 Wine of the Year

2018 Fontodi, Flaccianello della Pieve, Colli della Toscana Centrale IGT, Italy
94 Points - $250

Once this young wine has had a chance to stretch its legs it reveals scents of dark cherry and pomegranate that are deep and pure. Accompanying scents of florals, fresh picked herbs, graphite pencil and gentle traces of to***co and leather.
Young but accessible on the palate. Extremely balanced with all components working in harmony. Polished tannins are firm but effortless, acidity perfectly balances those tannins. The concentration is impressive without being a bruiser. This is an elegant vintage that should age exceptionally well.

11/27/2023

Halfway to the top spot! The #5 Wine of 2023 is...

2017 Brittan Vineyards, 'Block R', McMinnville, Oregon
94 Points - $65

This 53-case bottling comes from a one-third acre block on the west side of Cygnus. A blend of 94% Syrah, 2% Viognier, 2% Durif, 1% each Grenache and Carignan that is co fermented and aged in once filled puncheon for 15 months, then allowed to develop in bottle for approx. 48 months prior to release.

Expressive on the nose with layered aromas of blackberry, olallieberry, black cherry and black plum with notes of violets, Szechuan peppercorn, blood orange zest, baking spice, smoky minerals, bay leaf, herbs with hints of black olive and forest floor.
The palate has a silky inviting texture and mouthfeel with juicy-structured acidity and ripe gripping tannins. Flavors show a core of black cherry, fresh blackberries and black currant alongside notes of baking spice, blood orange, herbs, violets, earth and minerals. The sexy finish is long and texturally pleasing with the tannins taking on a velvety feel. The '17 is drinking exceptional and should improve with time. Hard to wait given this showing.

11/26/2023

The #6 Wine of the Year is a memorable one hailing from Eastern France

2016 Trimbach, Riesling, 'Frédéric Emile', Alsace France
95 Points - $84

This old vine Riesling is dry and powerful. Sourced from two Grand Cru's overlooking the estate, Geisberg and Osterberg and aged for seven years in the cellar of Trimbach.
This wine is rich and powerful but so precise and focused. Complex notes of Buddha's hand, lime sherbet and stone fruits can be found laced with crushed stone, sea spray, fennel, thyme, orchard blossoms, and slate. Dry and chiseled on the palate with above moderate phenolics that lead to plenty of crunchy textures, high-toned acidity and a superb mid-palate density. Everlasting through the finish.

11/25/2023

It's Small Business Saturday and we'd like to say thank you to our wine club members who loyally support our small business. Didn't know we have a wine club? Check out the details below. If you are following the Top 10 Wines of the Year countdown, you might be surprised to know that a few of these wines have actually been in our wine club shipments this year!

Club Cuvée
My Premium Wine Club that contains six premium wines from a mix of allocated, boutique and club-only wines from highly acclaimed wineries. The wines retail on average between $35 and $55. This club also includes special offerings on luxury wines. Average retail value of this club is $400+ savings of over $100/shipment

Choose Between:
Two Shipments Per Year (Spring and Fall)
Four Shipments per Year, Shipped Quarterly

$300 per Shipment plus Tax and Shipping -
Loyalty rewards include: 1-year membership receives 50% all shipping, after 2 years shipping is inclusive.

11/25/2023

On to the #7 Wine of the Year, a Champagne Masterpiece

NV Pierre Péters, Grand Cru, 'L'Etonnant Monsieur Victor' MK 13, Champagne France
96 Points - $475

The L'Etonnant Monsieur Victor is a multi-vintage blend with the base coming from the amazing 2013 vintage all from the Grand Cru terroir of Chétillon, the rest of the blend comes from a perpetual reserve dating back to 1988. The reserve wines are held in tank, concrete and vats. The cuvée is then aged 6 years on the lees under cork.

This wine is an absolute clinic in the chalky soils of this Grand Cru. Austere, but not overly so, young but so impressive. Notes of lemon oil, apple, acacia flowers, saffron, hazelnuts, almond paste, and proofed bread dough come nicely laced with chalk, mineral and hints of dried stone fruit. A full-bodied champagne that envelops the palate and excites it with a steady and precise mousse. The finish is unending and showcases impressive phenolics. Truly a special wine.

11/24/2023

I present you with the #8 Wine of the Year

2015 Tommaso Bussola L'Errante, Veronese IGT, Italy
93 Points - $100

L'Errante, translates as "the wanderer". Unique, an Amarone-styled wine made from Bordelais varietals. The wine is made up of 50% Merlot, 25% Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc. Following fermentation the wine is aged 64 months, 40 of which new barriques and then an additional eight months in bottle prior to release.

Gorgeous in the glass with scents of brown sugar, Luxardo cherry, Chambord, candied plum, aged balsamic, rosemary, camphor and notes of molten chocolate, baking spices and liquid violets.
The palate is full throttle with a touch of RS that comes with a heavyweight body, unabashed abv, juicy acidity and ripe, suave, velvety tannins that all come together in a measure of balance. Flavors are long on the palate with notes of brandied cherry, kirsch, cassis, and muddled blackberry that bring in additional flavors of liquid chocolate, baking spices, floral pastilles, balsamic, herbs and sh**ha smoke. Long and plush through the finish.

11/23/2023

Happy Thanksgiving! The countdown continues with the #9 Wine of the Year

2019 Von Winning, Riesling 'Ozyetra', Pfalz, Germany
95 Points - $200

This dry Riesling hails from the grand cru Pechstein vineyard which takes its name from the black basalt rubble that is found here together with weathered red sandstone, sandy loam and friable clay. The wine is spontaneously fermented in 500L barrels and then left on the gross lees for 24 months. The finished wine is a selection of the vintages best barrels and is bottled using gravity flow with no use of fining agents that has led to an extremely sophisticated, unique and indigenous style.

Aromas are anything but shy and show richness and complexity. Scents are driven by savory and mineral tones, grilled lemons, kumquat, white peach, Szechuan buttons, sea spray, iodine, frankincense and fine wood are wrapped in notes of toffee, smoky minerals and gun smoke.
The palate is intense with bracing acidity and medium-plus phenolics. Textural and layered in all the right ways. Flavors of citrus, smoke, melon and stone fruits come with saline, hints of toffee, oak and mineral drive through the very long finish. Seriously impressive.

11/22/2023

The day has come, our annual countdown of the Top 50 Wines of 2023 begins now with the #10 Wine of the Year. We will countdown the Top 10 revealing a wine each day culminating with the #1 Wine of the Year and the entire TOP 50 list on December 1st.

The #10 Wine of the Year
2019 Tendril Wine Cellars, 'Pretender' (White) Pinot Noir, Willamette Valley Oregon
93 Points - $65

The 2019 Pretender is sensational. There are a handful of white Pinot Noir's floating around the Willamette Valley but this is by far the best rendition I have had to date. Only 140 cases produced. 100% Pinot Noir aged 16 months in primarily neutral French oak barrels; 0% new.

The nose comes laced with scents of nectarine, white peach, Kumquat, dragon fruit, orange blossom, citrus sorbet, pink peppercorn and soft subtle hints of sea mist, mandarin and wildflowers.
The palate entry is where these wine shines, purely Pinot Noir; textural with palate weight you would expect from the varietal. Acidity is bright and lifting and pairs well with the moderate phenolics, Flavors of above moderate intensity envelope the palate with notes of citrus sorbet, nectarine, quince and dragon fruit with lighter nuances of pink peppercorn, orchard blossoms, mandarin, sea mist and lavender. Long and lingering through the finish.

11/12/2023

The countdown begins November 22nd with the reveal of the #10 Wine of The Year. Each day we will reveal a new wine counting down the Top 10 Wines of the Year, until the #1 Wine of the Year and the full Top 50 wines of the Year unveiled Dec. 1st.