98pts James Suckling

Delicious, velvety and mouth-filling, this wine could convert any merlot skeptic to being a fan. Mountain grown in the Stagecoach Vineyard and Waters Vineyard, it is intense and saturated with flavor, but wrapped in luscious tannins that tempt you to drink it now. Blueberries, creme de cassis, cherries, cream and mint. 100% merlot. Drinkable now, but best from 2028.

95pts Lisa Perrotti-Brown The Wine Independent

The single-varietal 2021 Merlot comes 62% from Waters Ranch and 38% from Stagecoach Vineyard and is due to be bottled very soon. Deep garnet-purple in color, it comes barreling out of the glass with bold expressions of juicy blueberries, Morello cherries, and wild blueberries, leading to wafts of rose oil, cardamom, and cumin seed with a waft of fragrant soil. The full-bodied palate delivers a very fine-grained yet firm backbone of ripe, rounded tannins and beautiful tension to support the black fruit and floral layers, finishing long with a spicy lift.

95pts The Wine Independent

The single-varietal 2021 Merlot comes 62% from Waters Ranch and 38% from Stagecoach Vineyard and is due to be bottled very soon. Deep garnet-purple in color, it comes barreling out of the glass with bold expressions of juicy blueberries, Morello cherries, and wild blueberries, leading to wafts of rose oil, cardamom, and cumin seed with a waft of fragrant soil. The full-bodied palate delivers a very fine-grained yet firm backbone of ripe, rounded tannins and beautiful tension to support the black fruit and floral layers, finishing long with a spicy lift.

94pts Wine Advocate

Pahlmeyer's 2021 Merlot is 100% Merlot matured 18 months in 89% new French oak and bottled unfined and unfiltered. A blend of fruit from the Pahlmeyer Estate Vineyard (68%) and Stagecoach (32%), it's ripe and plummy, with further notes of black cherries and mocha. It's full-bodied and structured, nicely firm without being tough or hard, with a long, cool, savory finish.

Winemaker Notes

The commanding concentration of our Napa Valley Merlot is evident from first swirl, as bold aromas of crushed wild blackberries dominate the bouquet. The palate abounds with silky layers—an abundance of ripe black cherry and currant unfurl to earthy, savory notes of leather, camphor, and prosciutto, finishing long with an echo of anise, almond brittle,and tea leaf. Gorgeous structure and mid-palate focus suggest this cellar-worthy wine will evolve beautifully for a decade or more.