Christie Kiley on June 23, 2014 0 Comments By now we all know what a lashing Merlot received thanks to the Blockbuster hit in 2004 ‘Sideways’. Gotta love pop culture. What I love more is how most of us follow it like a flock of sheep. This week, I am Merlot’s advocate. I love a good Pinot Noir as much as the next person and I am quite sure the masses were not that much interested in it, nor knew what it was, until that movie. I gotta hand it to them, it was a clever move, and rightly so, Pinot Noir does deserve the attention. I do not think Merlot deserved such damage however. If Merlot could have obtained a lawyer, it should have sued for defamation of character. This week, to redeem itself, not like it ever had to, I present the Sbragia 2010 Merlot Home Ranch Dry Creek Valley of Sonoma California. The story of the Sbragia winery goes back to Tuscany in 1904. Where their grandfather, Gino, had worked in the wineries located in the Italian-Swiss colony. The Sbragia family made their way to Sonoma County and the second generation of viticulturists and winemakers worked with their father in the Dry Creek Valley as kids and young adults. The family’s philosophy was simple, for good wine you needed good land, good fruit and careful vineyard practices. Ed and Adam knew their father was right and they have carried that philosophy ever since. Today, the third generation is helping out, with Adam Sbragia helping out in making the wine and Kevin, who is in the cellar lending a hand throughout the harvests. The family affair is extended with Adam’s wife, Kathy helping out in the hospitality department. And Ed’s wife, Jane and their daughter, Gina help out in the tasting room. Now the fifth generation has arrived and the family business will probably continue on for many more in the Dry Creek Valley. As many people know, the Dry Creek Valley is recognized as one of the top premium wine making regions in Northern California, located only an hour or so north of San Francisco. It is known for its green rolling hillsides, adorned with a many forest and vineyards. There are nine-thousand acres of vines in total in its two-mile wide by sixteen-mile wide valley. Its grape-growing history dates bay over one-hundred and forty years. The vineyards of the Sbragia Family Vineyards consist of twenty-five acres of Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, and Merlot. The microclimate of Dry Creek Valley is that of varying elements; with warm days that bring grapes to ideal maturity and cool mornings with fog from the Pacific that are ideal for their prized Sauvignon Blanc and Zinfandel. Those are pretty good conditions for Merlot too, as you will find out with the Sbragia 2010 Merlot Home Ranch Dry Creek Valley. The valley was originally cultivated by French immigrants in 1870, but it was the Italian pioneers who quickly realized that the region was very similar to that of their beloved Tuscany and Piedmont. They originally planted the varietals of Petit Sirah, Zinfandel and Carignane, but today you can find Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Zinfandel and our star grape today, Merlot. The rocky soils here concentrate a many fruit flavor and aroma characteristics. The Dry Creek Valley is the home of full-flavored wines perfect for pizza and filet mignon. In case you need a wine pairing to go with either of those, here it is. Even if you were somehow turned away from Merlot, I encourage you to give it another try. This one should change your mind. The fruits are absolutely beautiful. The aromas first hit you with plenty of ripe, but tart plums, dark and juicy cherries with notes of fresh ground coffee and baking chocolates. The palate is smooth with more juicy berry notes, sweet cranberry and finishes with tart cherries and a note of spice from fresh ground peppercorns, chili spice with tertiary aromas on the finish with a lingering perfume of tart and spicy plums. More Wine Reviews: Fromm Clayvin Vineyard 2011 Pinot Noir Gary Farrell Ramal Vineyard 2010 Pinot Noir Las Perdices 2010 Cabernet Sauvignon Cakebread Cellars Red Hills 2010 Zinfandel
