11/3/06 New Favorite

Welcome to Vine to Wine this is your host Linda Moran and as many of you know my new favorite wine is usually the wine that is in my glass at the time. Recently I was in Walla Walla Washington and I had the privilege of tasting Merlot from Northstar. A winery that specializes in the grape that put Washington state on the wine map. And you guessed it  I found my new favorite wine. In the past, I had not been a big fan of Northstar wines. However, in all fairness I was tasting the wines after they had been uncorked and sitting open for a very long time and I wasn't taking that into account. You see recently I had an opportunity to taste the wine again, when it was first opened, and afterwards I was delighted to sample an older vintage. My experience could not have been better. The wine had true Merlot quality  by that I mean it actually tasted like Merlot instead of oak vanilla. It was full of fruity flavor without being gooey and it had a complimentary level of acidity that really supported the fruit, rather than being down played as so many producers of Merlot have a tendency to do. The wines are made under the watchful eye of the California winemaker and consultant Jed Steele formerly of Kendall-Jackson fame. The wine is available through normal retail outlets but if you have trouble finding it visit their website at northstar wines dot com and you can learn more about how to purchase Northstar Merlot. Remember to send your wine questions to Linda at vine to wine dot net and thank you for joining me on today's Vine to Wine.