Name: Karen Birmingham Clarksburg Merlot 2020
Variety: 100% Merlot
Region: Clarksburg, CA
Country: USA
Year: 2020
Price: $16.99
Winery review (from NakedWines.com): This juicy, easy-drinking Merlot is full of refined dark fruit flavors, from ripe blueberry to plump blackberry right from the bramble bush, backed by a silky finish that’s made this red an Angel favorite for 6 vintages and counting.
Wine Folly: from pp. 131-132: Merlot is loved for its boisterous black cherry flavors, supple tannins, and smoky or chocolatey finish. Flavors include cherry, plum, chocolate, dried herbs, and vanilla.
My review: Several of my friends couldn't keep from coughing when they took their first sips. I didn't catch that intense burst of acidity myself, interestingly, which I found was more in line with the textbook's classification. I would call the wine mildly acidic, though over several minutes I felt the stronger bite in my stomach, if not so much in my mouth. The fact that I hadn't eaten in several hours may have accentuated this. I enjoyed the powerful flavors this wine brought--this is what I imagine when I think of a good, albeit dry, red wine. "Dark" and "fruity" would be the terms I'd apply, though I had trouble picking out individual fruit flavors. This wine stayed in my mouth a little longer than the Malbec, which perhaps indicates a fuller body (despite Wine Folly claiming otherwise). Perhaps I lucked out in tasting this one after the Malbec, as it may have overpowered the latter otherwise.
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