Winemaker Lucas Meeker has always walked the line between making wines that age for many years and wines that can be enjoyed right away. It is a difficult balance to achieve, but the reward far outweighs the challenge. We do not shy away from using grape varieties that arenāt necessarily the most popular. Instead, we craft them into wines that over-deliver for the price. With this offer we are highlighting some grapes that we believe continue to reward us with great wines, regardless of their ranking in the ātrendingā scale. Merlot, for example, has had a difficult journey in overcoming the backlash that the movie āSidewaysā created but remains one of the pinnacle varieties in the world. Zinfandel has had its struggles too, with many producers chasing the over-the-top style that the critics seem to reward, but consumers are now rejecting due to the high alcohol and residual sugar. Syrah may be the most misunderstood of the three, and rightfully so, as it seems there are so many interpretations of the wine being produced around the world. Many people prefer the big, bold fruit driven versions of Shiraz as produced in Australia, while others gravitate towards the magnificent Rhone wines from Franceās CĆ“te-RĆ“tie and Hermitage, or the wonderful blends from the ChĆ¢teauneuf-du-Pape appellations. Regardless of the varying stylistic approaches, or the market trends involved, Zinfandel, Syrah, and Merlot have always held a place in our heart and a home in our Meeker wines.
We hope you like our approach to these varietal wines, as well as the sum of all parts represented by the Z-S-M blend. Each of these wines were the result of small lot fermentations using different yeast strains to build complexity, and then aged in neutral French and American oak barrels for 24 ā 36 months. In the case of the Z-S-M, we then blend barrels of each of the three varieties from the 2014 vintage to come up with our Sonoma County version of a CDP wine.
2018 Meeker Zinfandel, Barrel Select, Dry Creek Valley
Tasting Notes
The 2018 Zinfandel is the perfect representation of our winemaking ethos here at Meeker: to make wines that embrace the advantages of the new world while honoring the traditions of the old world. And while we love making structured, big Zinfandel, this wine handed us a different set of cards, and we went with it. The wine opens with raspberry and blackberry fruit and dustings of star anise and clove. The palate shows depth to the fruit character with layers of juicy raspberry and high-toned streaks of orchids, eucalyptus, and a dusty cocoa. The structure is plush and builds quietly to a juicy and racey finish. To be frank, this is the new-school-est Meeker Zin weāve ever released, but it knows its heritage. This wineās strength aligns it with earlier enjoyment; its really primed for drinking now and for the next two years but could sit for 10-12.
Specs
Vintage: 2018
Blend: 100% Zinfandel
Appellation: Dry Creek Valley
Alcohol: 14.9%
Production: 144 cases
Bottled August 2020
2017 Meeker Merlot, Alexander Valley
Tasting Notes
This is our second release of the Alexander Valley Merlot, and it represents a compelling counterāand heckuva valueāto the mainly Dry Creek Valley components of our Handprint Merlot. This wine highlights Alexander Valleyās strengths as an appellation: plush, round character with elegance and structure in tow. This wine revolves around a red fruit core of raspberries and black cherries enveloped in a caramel blanket of oak. Hints of cigar box and leather compliment a round, bright palate that, while big, remains light on its feet and friendly. The finish carries the oaky character into a broad, medium plus finish that closes with acidity. This is a Merlot that will happily accompany a rack of ribs or a cassoulet. While this will age for at least a decade, it wants to be enjoyed in the next 1-3 years.
Specs
Vintage: 2017
Blend: 93% Merlot, 7% Syrah
Appellation: Alexander Valley
Alcohol: 14.8%
Production: 600 cases
Bottled in April 2021
2014 Meeker Syrah, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
Gold Medal, San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition
Tasting Notes
Produced from a vineyard high atop the mountains west of Dry Creek Valley, this is a bold red that will improve with age. The technique for Rhone variety fermentation revolves around core concepts of bright fruit, balanced structure, and varietal integrity. We T-Bin fermented this Syrah to build complexity through yeast variety and to allow extra punchdowns as necessary. We were careful not to pull too much tannin from the grapes, so as not to lose the juicy character of the fruit. On the nose, the wine exhibits notes of blackberry compote with mint leaves, red dirt, dusty stone, cloves and eucalyptus. A playful and high-volume mid-palate slides away with elegant length to the finish. This wine is really showing well right now and will continue to develop for another 5-10 years.
Specs
Vintage: 2014
Appellation: Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
Alcohol: 14.8%
2014 Meeker Z-S-M Red Blend, Sonoma County
Tasting Notes
The original destiny of this wine was to be the fourth installment of our Combination Code series of wines and that pedigree shows. The two years that this wine has spent in bottle have allowed it to develop into a complex, mature wine that reminds me of classic northern Italian blends. On the nose the wine has a dusty, earthy layer covering dried tart cherries and Fuji apple skins. Weaving through this melange is a brambly streak that connects the wineās nose to its palate. The fruit character on the palate evolves into firm plums and fig held up by a solid but evolved acidity. This acidity highlights a minerality and granite character nestled between the mid-palate and the finish. Though this blend is ready now with its bottle-aged head start, it will continue to develop for at least 5-7 years.
Specs
Vintage: 2014
Blend: 44.4% Zinfandel, 33.3% Syrah, and 22.3% Merlot
Appellation: Sonoma County
Alcohol: 14.7%
Whatās Included
4-bottles:
1x 2018 Meeker Zinfandel, Barrel Select, Dry Creek Valley
1x 2017 Meeker Merlot, Alexander Valley
1x 2014 Meeker Syrah, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
1x 2014 Meeker Z-S-M Red Blend, Sonoma County
Case:
3x 2018 Meeker Zinfandel, Barrel Select, Dry Creek Valley
3x 2017 Meeker Merlot, Alexander Valley
3x 2014 Meeker Syrah, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
The Meeker family takes pride in an unconventional attitude towards wine. As the matriarch, Molly, would love to tell you with a smile, āwe take nothing seriously but the wine itself.ā
Charles and Molly Meeker bought their first vineyard at the end of West Dry Creek Road in Sonoma Countyās Dry Creek Valley in 1977. In 1984, Charlie and Molly established their winery on the vineyard site with Charlie as the winemaker. In its early years, the winery specialized in Zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Chardonnay. Today the Meeker Vineyard continues to operate as a family operation. Second generation winemaker, Lucas Meeker, joined the winery full time in 2007 and is now the Head Winemaker and in charge of daily operations. Molly is President and in charge of marketing and accounting. Until his passing earlier this year, Charlie was CEO and our resident historian, and he often shared his stories about the wine business and his career as a lawyer, movie producer, and studio executive in Los Angeles.
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OK, OR, RI, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
2014 Meeker Syrah, Kenās Wine Rating: Very Good (89)
Review date: March 24, 2018
This midnight purple colored Syrah from Meeker open with a fragrant blackberry jam bouquet with hints of plum and blueberry. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, slightly acidic and juicy. The flavor profile is a strong mineral infused blackberry with notes of black olive and a hint of dark chocolate and anise. The finish is dry and its mild tannins and flavors linger nicely. This Syrah would pair well with slow cooked beef brisket. Enjoy - Ken
We used screwcaps on everything up to $40 from 2007 vintage through 2014 vintage. After we fully trusted the taint-free agglomerates from DIAM and Trefinos, we moved many of the $30-40 wines back to the same taint-free agglomerated product lines in slightly less expensive lengths/time guarantees (not relevant to customer experience, really) because they got well within the cost range of screwcaps.
I fought the war for screwcaps on ultra premium wines for a decade, and have a little bit of PTSD about it. And while I personally am fine with either closure on any bottle of wine I buy or drink myself, I canāt say that I think screwcaps have made the leap for the average customer.
We still use screwcaps on most of the wines under $30 retail and on the $30+ wines that I think a hermetic or closer-to-hermetic seal would benefit the wine (read: fruit-oriented, medium to medium plus structured reds like our Grenache).
Like everything else I like to preach, we really try and approach closures pragmatically with the best experience/purpose in mind. That said, if we could really go either way, then weāll tie break with customer preference and that is still to corks.
I think screwcaps with tin liners are better for certain kinds of red wines and most phenolic whites. I think screwcaps with saranex liners are roughly equivalent to most good corks for the most part with a slight lean more towards the freshness preservation/stasis aspect of tin liners.
I think DIAMs/Trefinos CWINE are the aging/development equivalent to natural corks, but are otherwise superior to natural corks in just about every way.
Like I said in my previous comment, we try and approach closures with a pragmatic frame of mind where we generally want to put the right closure on the right wine.
All that said, a lot of the most recent science suggests that the most important factor of a wineās development in bottle is not cork/cap/OTR/etc and more likely just the DO in the wine at bottling.
Ultimately, Iām not afraid to put a screwcap or a DIAM/CWINE on anythingāas I said above as well, if itās a tie weāll let the pur aesthetic preferences of the customersā make the call.
I waited until yesterday for the initial taste. Enjoyed a glass with sushi dinner. Itās been HOT here for at least a week, yet I found this wine to be refreshing. Iāve been drinking Moscow mules as of late in place of wine because I needed something more refreshing in this extreme early summer heat. Pleasant surprise. Itās lighter. Itās fruity (not a fruit bomb, but raspberry with a hint of tart).
I canāt figure out how to do the proper banner whilst writing this on my phone. I also canāt figure out how to add pictures from my phone. Iāll add them later (hopefully) after trying the wine again after work tonight.
Let me add that itās ready to drink now. No need to lay it down. Itās done. Itās ready. Itās delicious. Iām a sucker for a mixed case, so this is a great deal, at a great price, even though Iāve only tasted 1/4.
@kasandrae While I appreciate your [accurate] description that the wine is indeed ready to rip, we do pride ourselves on building Zins that will reward cellar time. While this likely wonāt hold up the 20-30 years that our earliest Zins did, itās easily got another decade in it.
I was excited to receive my rat email and love being able to give feedback to the Casemates community. I received the 2014 Meeker Z-S-M Red Blend
this past week and opened it Friday. The bootle looks appealing, has a screw cap, and is clear about what the breakdown of the wines within: 44.4% zinfandel, 33.3% syrah, and 22.3% merlot. Iām generally a fan of reds more than whites and would pick a good Willamette Valley Pinot Noir over most other wine on a given day. I tend to also drink syrah, cabernet sauvignon, and red blends. We traveled to Bordeaux a couple of years ago and I did find quite a bit of wine I liked. My husband is more of a zinfandel fan than I am so we do drink those fairly regularly. In summer, we drink a lot of bubbles.
An image of the front and back of the bottle are posted below.
I tried the wine in a pinot noir glass. I also tried the wine in a more traditional Bordeaux glass, as seen below.
In the glasses, you can see the wine color, almost rusty, a bit plum colored, with a tinge of orange. The legs can also be seen if you look closely, which appeared slower than I expected. Upon opening, I got alcohol, plums, some red fruit, and spice. The wine smelled a bit closed. With the first sip, I got a lot of jam. Very fruit forward. The jam developed in my mouth and really hit the sides of my tongue, which I donāt recall happening much with any wines in the past. The wine absolutely tasted better in the pinot noir glass, which allowed for a fruitier nose and flavor. The Bordeaux glass made the wine pronounce overly dry and flavorless. Iād call this wine medium bodied. The wine is easy drinking on day 1 and tastes like the breakdown on the bottle.
I left the wine on my counter for 2-3 hours and came back to it since it tasted closed. Not much happened. My husband had similar notes as I did and his first sip was after the few hours of air. We saved some for days 2 and 3. I tried the wine day 2 and it didnāt seem to hold up well. Iād still drink the wine day 2 but it lost a bit of the fruit and easy drinking. By day 3, Iād probably toss and open a fresh bottle so I could enjoy my glass for the night. (Though my bottles donāt often get to day 3ā¦)
Overall, the wine was a great table red but did not hold up super well on day 2. Day 1 is super easy drinking with decent flavor. May be good for a summer barbecue and screw tops make drinking at a party much easier. With this being a split case, it may be worth the price, but I wouldnāt be happy spending this price on a case on this wine alone.
Hello again; so very happy to be able to Rat again for all of you fine CaseMateys!
I was fortunate enough to receive a bottle of
The Meeker Vineyard 2017 Merlot (Alexander Valley et Sonoma County)
The bottle came in the hot afternoon, so 24 hours in the cellar to cool to a nice 54F was certainly required to cool it down to a better serving temperature.
The bottle was hefty and substantial, which certainly gave the impression of quality and a certainā¦ grandiose to it. The lightly stained agglomerate cork popped out without issue, and the initial nose was light and tart smelling of ripe berries. The wife and I had already prepared wood-fired pizza, expecting a firm structured Merlot to pair well with buttery crust and rich meats and cheese. We were certainly on the money with the food pairing as the Merlot stood up very nicely to the food, cutting through fat and salt with high alcohol (14.8%) and firm tannins. The color was a deep rich garnet with just a thin rim of lovely pink hues at the very edge. After sitting open for an hour, the nose in the glass opened to rich dark fruit still, but with much more oak, minerals, and funky earthiness. On the tounge, the variety of flavors are many and pronounced. Rich berries are up front and show up first, and then acidity and alcohol come quickly to back up the fruit. Ever present is a strong bass-line of firm tannins that never quit. The tannin structure isnāt offensive, but it is not for the faint of palate - it simply doesnāt quit, even with some time to breathe, but the balance of flavors does change over 1-24 hours. I wouldnāt call the wine āwell-integratedā only because all of these flavors were all very distinct, but I would call it āwell-balancedā. Overall we enjoyed the wine quite a bit and are intrigued as to what this Merlot could do in a top notch ZSM blend. Thanks to Alice and Meeker Vineyards!
@emribecky Your description of the tannin structure as ādoesnāt quitā is pretty much on the nose for what we shoot for with BDX grapes. Soā¦ thanks for the compliment.
Sounds like two of the wines are not well integrated with the oak. I am not saying oak bombs but when you pick fresh cut lumber. Hopefully Lucas can stop by?
Iām only seeing one comment regarding the Merlot being more prominent oakāand thatās accurate. We wanted this Merlot to be more oak forward than our higher end Merlots.
That said, itās often the case that people conflate oak and grape tannin. Our wines are often very tannicābut built on grape tannin and supported with oak. While the Merlot certainly got more oak than would be base protocol with our wines, weāre still talking a fraction of what you would see from many other wineries.
@losthighwayz I should say occasionally, not rarely with Syrah. We do use whole cluster on more medium bodied grapes regularly (Pinot, Grenache, etc.).
We also just released a super limited bottling 100% full carbonic 2020 Dolcetto under the Hone series; itās a barnburner.
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations) The Meeker Vineyard Mixed Reds - $35 = 15.55%
@Winedavid49 Thanks David. Brought the second kiddo home from the NICU last Wednesday and the first one woke up with a 103 fever Saturdayā¦ so, yeah, fun weekend.
@lucasmeeker@Winedavid49 hereās to good health for your family and thank you for the huge participation. I really enjoyed the information. Also went back and re-visited the older thread. LOTS of good stuff there!
I remember splitting a case from that offer but missed some of the comments.
Thanks again! TB
Apologized, but each varietal were horrible. Read about the family and it sounds like the heart and spirit exist but these bottles sat too long and/or werenāt good from the start.
There are so many options and Iām sure the family would want us to enjoy their toils but also let them know when there labour has been - maybe - mishandled or representedā¦.
2018 Meeker Zinfandel, Barrel Select, Dry Creek Valley
Tasting Notes
Specs
2017 Meeker Merlot, Alexander Valley
Tasting Notes
Specs
2014 Meeker Syrah, Dry Creek Valley, Sonoma County
Gold Medal, San Francisco Chronicle Wine Competition
Tasting Notes
Specs
2014 Meeker Z-S-M Red Blend, Sonoma County
Tasting Notes
Specs
Whatās Included
4-bottles:
Case:
Price Comparison
Not for sale online, $420/case MSRP
About The Winery
Available States
AZ, CA, CO, DC, FL, GA, ID, IL, IN, IA, KS, LA, ME, MD, MA, MI, MN, MO, MT, NE, NV, NH, NJ, NM, NY, NC, OH, OK, OR, RI, SC, TN, TX, VT, VA, WA, WV, WI, WY
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Jun 28 - Thursday, Jul 1
The Meeker Vineyard Mixed Reds
4 bottles for $74.99 $18.75/bottle + $2/bottle shipping
Case of 12 for $189.99 $15.83/bottle + $1/bottle shipping
2018 Meeker Zinfandel, Barrel Select
2017 Meeker Merlot, Alexander Valley
2014 Meeker Syrah, Dry Creek Valley
2014 Meeker Z-S-M Red Blend
so glad to have Meeker back. Great deal to round out your collection.
I see what you did there. One bottle each of zin, syrah, and merlot then a bottle made up of all three! All is right with the world
well letās seeā¦from Ken:
2014 Meeker Syrah, Kenās Wine Rating: Very Good (89)
Review date: March 24, 2018
This midnight purple colored Syrah from Meeker open with a fragrant blackberry jam bouquet with hints of plum and blueberry. On the palate, this wine is medium bodied, slightly acidic and juicy. The flavor profile is a strong mineral infused blackberry with notes of black olive and a hint of dark chocolate and anise. The finish is dry and its mild tannins and flavors linger nicely. This Syrah would pair well with slow cooked beef brisket. Enjoy - Ken
https://www.kenswineguide.com/wine_review/Meeker-2014-Syrah
and the Syrah was offered here Jan 2019. A little winemaker chatter about the wine and the screwtop:
https://casemates.com/forum/topics/the-meeker-vineyard-syrah-vertical
fwiw
Curious why some are screw-cap (awesome) and others are cork.
DIPLOMAT! RAT-A-TAT! FAT CAT! AWESOME!
@InVinoVeritas
We used screwcaps on everything up to $40 from 2007 vintage through 2014 vintage. After we fully trusted the taint-free agglomerates from DIAM and Trefinos, we moved many of the $30-40 wines back to the same taint-free agglomerated product lines in slightly less expensive lengths/time guarantees (not relevant to customer experience, really) because they got well within the cost range of screwcaps.
I fought the war for screwcaps on ultra premium wines for a decade, and have a little bit of PTSD about it. And while I personally am fine with either closure on any bottle of wine I buy or drink myself, I canāt say that I think screwcaps have made the leap for the average customer.
We still use screwcaps on most of the wines under $30 retail and on the $30+ wines that I think a hermetic or closer-to-hermetic seal would benefit the wine (read: fruit-oriented, medium to medium plus structured reds like our Grenache).
Like everything else I like to preach, we really try and approach closures pragmatically with the best experience/purpose in mind. That said, if we could really go either way, then weāll tie break with customer preference and that is still to corks.
@InVinoVeritas @lucasmeeker bummer about the change - why do any screwcaps if you feel DIAMs are ābetterā? Curious to know . . .
@InVinoVeritas @tercerowines I donāt remember saying that DIAMs are better.
I think screwcaps with tin liners are better for certain kinds of red wines and most phenolic whites. I think screwcaps with saranex liners are roughly equivalent to most good corks for the most part with a slight lean more towards the freshness preservation/stasis aspect of tin liners.
I think DIAMs/Trefinos CWINE are the aging/development equivalent to natural corks, but are otherwise superior to natural corks in just about every way.
Like I said in my previous comment, we try and approach closures with a pragmatic frame of mind where we generally want to put the right closure on the right wine.
All that said, a lot of the most recent science suggests that the most important factor of a wineās development in bottle is not cork/cap/OTR/etc and more likely just the DO in the wine at bottling.
Ultimately, Iām not afraid to put a screwcap or a DIAM/CWINE on anythingāas I said above as well, if itās a tie weāll let the pur aesthetic preferences of the customersā make the call.
Iām interested in this deal but waiting on the rats.
Would anyone from Michigan want to split a case?
@joe139
Case is bought! We have 4 bottles still up for grabs if any SE MI folks want in on a split (1 bottle of each of course)
Rat here! On Friday, I received the
2018 Zinfandel from Dry Creek Valley
I waited until yesterday for the initial taste. Enjoyed a glass with sushi dinner. Itās been HOT here for at least a week, yet I found this wine to be refreshing. Iāve been drinking Moscow mules as of late in place of wine because I needed something more refreshing in this extreme early summer heat. Pleasant surprise. Itās lighter. Itās fruity (not a fruit bomb, but raspberry with a hint of tart).
I canāt figure out how to do the proper banner whilst writing this on my phone. I also canāt figure out how to add pictures from my phone. Iāll add them later (hopefully) after trying the wine again after work tonight.
Let me add that itās ready to drink now. No need to lay it down. Itās done. Itās ready. Itās delicious. Iām a sucker for a mixed case, so this is a great deal, at a great price, even though Iāve only tasted 1/4.
@kasandrae Thank you for the rattage.
@kasandrae While I appreciate your [accurate] description that the wine is indeed ready to rip, we do pride ourselves on building Zins that will reward cellar time. While this likely wonāt hold up the 20-30 years that our earliest Zins did, itās easily got another decade in it.
@kasandrae looks like a synthetic cork!
Love me some meeker, nice pricing to boot. Iām stocked up otherwise Iād jump on it.
@CorTot same here
I was excited to receive my rat email and love being able to give feedback to the Casemates community. I received the
2014 Meeker Z-S-M Red Blend
this past week and opened it Friday. The bootle looks appealing, has a screw cap, and is clear about what the breakdown of the wines within: 44.4% zinfandel, 33.3% syrah, and 22.3% merlot. Iām generally a fan of reds more than whites and would pick a good Willamette Valley Pinot Noir over most other wine on a given day. I tend to also drink syrah, cabernet sauvignon, and red blends. We traveled to Bordeaux a couple of years ago and I did find quite a bit of wine I liked. My husband is more of a zinfandel fan than I am so we do drink those fairly regularly. In summer, we drink a lot of bubbles.
An image of the front and back of the bottle are posted below.
I tried the wine in a pinot noir glass. I also tried the wine in a more traditional Bordeaux glass, as seen below.
In the glasses, you can see the wine color, almost rusty, a bit plum colored, with a tinge of orange. The legs can also be seen if you look closely, which appeared slower than I expected. Upon opening, I got alcohol, plums, some red fruit, and spice. The wine smelled a bit closed. With the first sip, I got a lot of jam. Very fruit forward. The jam developed in my mouth and really hit the sides of my tongue, which I donāt recall happening much with any wines in the past. The wine absolutely tasted better in the pinot noir glass, which allowed for a fruitier nose and flavor. The Bordeaux glass made the wine pronounce overly dry and flavorless. Iād call this wine medium bodied. The wine is easy drinking on day 1 and tastes like the breakdown on the bottle.
I left the wine on my counter for 2-3 hours and came back to it since it tasted closed. Not much happened. My husband had similar notes as I did and his first sip was after the few hours of air. We saved some for days 2 and 3. I tried the wine day 2 and it didnāt seem to hold up well. Iād still drink the wine day 2 but it lost a bit of the fruit and easy drinking. By day 3, Iād probably toss and open a fresh bottle so I could enjoy my glass for the night. (Though my bottles donāt often get to day 3ā¦)
Overall, the wine was a great table red but did not hold up super well on day 2. Day 1 is super easy drinking with decent flavor. May be good for a summer barbecue and screw tops make drinking at a party much easier. With this being a split case, it may be worth the price, but I wouldnāt be happy spending this price on a case on this wine alone.
@jchasma thank you for reporting
Hello again; so very happy to be able to Rat again for all of you fine CaseMateys!
I was fortunate enough to receive a bottle of
The Meeker Vineyard 2017 Merlot (Alexander Valley et Sonoma County)
The bottle came in the hot afternoon, so 24 hours in the cellar to cool to a nice 54F was certainly required to cool it down to a better serving temperature.
The bottle was hefty and substantial, which certainly gave the impression of quality and a certainā¦ grandiose to it. The lightly stained agglomerate cork popped out without issue, and the initial nose was light and tart smelling of ripe berries. The wife and I had already prepared wood-fired pizza, expecting a firm structured Merlot to pair well with buttery crust and rich meats and cheese. We were certainly on the money with the food pairing as the Merlot stood up very nicely to the food, cutting through fat and salt with high alcohol (14.8%) and firm tannins. The color was a deep rich garnet with just a thin rim of lovely pink hues at the very edge. After sitting open for an hour, the nose in the glass opened to rich dark fruit still, but with much more oak, minerals, and funky earthiness. On the tounge, the variety of flavors are many and pronounced. Rich berries are up front and show up first, and then acidity and alcohol come quickly to back up the fruit. Ever present is a strong bass-line of firm tannins that never quit. The tannin structure isnāt offensive, but it is not for the faint of palate - it simply doesnāt quit, even with some time to breathe, but the balance of flavors does change over 1-24 hours. I wouldnāt call the wine āwell-integratedā only because all of these flavors were all very distinct, but I would call it āwell-balancedā. Overall we enjoyed the wine quite a bit and are intrigued as to what this Merlot could do in a top notch ZSM blend. Thanks to Alice and Meeker Vineyards!
@emribecky thank you for reporting
@emribecky Your description of the tannin structure as ādoesnāt quitā is pretty much on the nose for what we shoot for with BDX grapes. Soā¦ thanks for the compliment.
@lucasmeeker It was an absolute pleasure to sample your wine!
Sounds like two of the wines are not well integrated with the oak. I am not saying oak bombs but when you pick fresh cut lumber. Hopefully Lucas can stop by?
@losthighwayz
Iām only seeing one comment regarding the Merlot being more prominent oakāand thatās accurate. We wanted this Merlot to be more oak forward than our higher end Merlots.
That said, itās often the case that people conflate oak and grape tannin. Our wines are often very tannicābut built on grape tannin and supported with oak. While the Merlot certainly got more oak than would be base protocol with our wines, weāre still talking a fraction of what you would see from many other wineries.
@losthighwayz @lucasmeeker Yeah, I wouldnāt call the Merlot an oak bomb at all. The earthy oak was really nicely balanced with everything going on.
@lucasmeeker thanks for jumping on board! I have always enjoyed your offers here and on WW. Any whole cluster going on?
@lucasmeeker I may have read other wood references on Cellartrackerā¦
@losthighwayz Generally no. Thatās not our angle with Merlot or Zin. Rarely with Syrah, and definitely not with this vineyard or our style with it.
@losthighwayz I should say occasionally, not rarely with Syrah. We do use whole cluster on more medium bodied grapes regularly (Pinot, Grenache, etc.).
We also just released a super limited bottling 100% full carbonic 2020 Dolcetto under the Hone series; itās a barnburner.
How much more are you saving by buying a full case?
(Note: Tax & Shipping not included in savings calculations) The Meeker Vineyard Mixed Reds - $35 = 15.55%
Hey everyoneāIāve had a heck of a past month or so; please forgive the missing voicemail.
Iām here to answer questions with 700% more words than you really actually wanted. Soā¦ shoot.
@lucasmeeker circle of life eh Lucas?
So glad to have you back. And of course my best to the family both in terms of condolences and celebrations.
@Winedavid49 Thanks David. Brought the second kiddo home from the NICU last Wednesday and the first one woke up with a 103 fever Saturdayā¦ so, yeah, fun weekend.
Thank you for the condolences.
@lucasmeeker @Winedavid49
@lucasmeeker @Winedavid49 hereās to good health for your family and thank you for the huge participation. I really enjoyed the information. Also went back and re-visited the older thread. LOTS of good stuff there!
I remember splitting a case from that offer but missed some of the comments.
Thanks again! TB
@ttboy23 @Winedavid49 No problem! Always happy to do it.
@lucasmeeker @Winedavid49 Lucas, congrats on the second kiddo! Itās one hell of an adventure (says the guy with a 4.5 and 1.5 year old).
Hi Lucas,
Thanks for participating. Do I remember correctly, did you make Vinito del Finito on the old site?
@kainc pretty sure the Vinito del Finito was Wellington, but the Vinitwo del Finito was Meeker.
@radiolysis
Ah, well thatās the one I bought (Vinitwo), so I was pretty much right. Loved that wine, but am overflowing.
@kainc @radiolysis Indeed it was the Vinitwo.
/giphy mixed-excitable-part
Apologized, but each varietal were horrible. Read about the family and it sounds like the heart and spirit exist but these bottles sat too long and/or werenāt good from the start.
There are so many options and Iām sure the family would want us to enjoy their toils but also let them know when there labour has been - maybe - mishandled or representedā¦.
0:0 for each but still looking at the Vineyardā¦