Saturday Night – When life gives you lemons… - Part 3

Click here for Part 1

For the main course I went with a request that Amy made – Lemon Cream Pasta with Prosciutto.  My pairing for this dish was a 2001 Shafer “Napa Valley” Merlot

"Lemon Cream Pasta with Prosciutto"

The nose on the Shafer was a neat mix of tobacco, black pepper, thyme, plum and walnut.  Tasting the wine you’ll notice spicy, herbaceous and fruity flavours running the length of it.  The wine was nicely balanced in its structure.  I described this wine as a very Shiraz like Merlot after tasting it.  It was a solid pairing with the Lemon Pasta.

"Great Shiraz... opps I mean Merlot"

Here is the group rating for the wine - Mick – 90, Mark - 88, Kathy - 90, Amy -88, Overall – 89


Here is the LCBO information on this wine –

SHAFER VINEYARDS MERLOT 2007


Vintages 346262
750 mL bottle
Price: $ 59.95
Wine, Red Wine
14.9% Alcohol/Vol.
Sugar Content : XD
Made in: California/Californie, United States
By: Shafer Vineyards
Release Date: Oct 2, 2010

Tasting Note - The 2007 Merlot (a 10,000-case cuvee that includes 15% Cabernet Sauvignon) may be the finest Merlot I have ever tasted from Shafer. Reasonably priced for a Napa Valley Merlot, it is characterized by elegance and substance. Its dark ruby/purple hue is followed by notes of wood spice, forest, flowers, berries, mocha, and wood smoke, medium to full body, sweet tannins, and good freshness. Enjoy it over the next 12+ years. Drink: 2009-2021. Score - 90. (Robert Parker Jr., www.erobertparker.com, Dec. 2009)

Note – The 2007 listed is not the 2001 reviewed above

At $60 bottle the Shafer is not a cheap Merlot.  I enjoyed it but I don’t see myself rushing out to buy another as I prefer the Joseph Phelps Merlot which is a little cheaper.  I did like how different this Merlot was from other Merlots I have tried before.  The movie Sideways made fun of Merlot but this is an amazingly diverse grape that can be done in so many wonderful styles that it would be a crime not to keep Merlot in your wine rotation.  Merlot is also one of the most flexible reds for food pairing; my little rule I have with pairing reds – “if in doubt, go Merlot”.

"Triple Lemon Tart"

To finish our ‘lemontastic’ evening I went with a Triple Lemon Tart. I like this dessert as it isn’t a really heavy dessert like a number of chocolate based ones can be so it is a great finish after a meal with multiple courses.

Cheers!

Mark