October is Merlot Month. The Wine Pairing Weekend group has been focusing on Merlot in October for eight years, led by Jeff from Food Wine Click. His preview post on the topic is quite informative. It’s my first time participating in this yearly event. I was so excited to receive my samples.

My first post is about a wine I received from Duckhorn wines, their Decoy Merlot 2019 was made from Napa Valley fruit. This ruby red in color, plush Merlot has loads of black plums, blueberries, and spice. The tannins were fine, with a lush mouthfeel, and a long finish, this Merlot was a good reminder of why I love this grape. It is also lovely that they have a young, female winemaker, Dana Epperson.

I have always loved Merlot. I never gave up on it. In fact, I hated that ridiculous movie that so impacted this grape.

Easy to drink and easier to pair, Merlot is a wonderful choice for expert and novice drinkers alike It’s been a long week so tonight rather than attempt something more interesting, I whipped up a great hamburger with some Zaatar, an herb that I love and some red onion. Simple fare but perfect for this Merlot.

According to Duckhorn’s website, “the 2019 growing season provided picture-perfect growing conditions. Following a cool, wet winter and spring, summer brought perfectly temperate weather that created exceptional flavor development in the grapes. Warm weather during harvest ensured ideal ripeness…resulting in lush and flavorful reds with deep colors and lovely intensity.”

Join us on twitter at 11:00am EDT. Below you will find articles from our group on Merlot.  More articles on Merlot will be coming from our crew so make sure to check back. In the meantime, join us tomorrow, October 8th and use our hashtags, #WinePW and #MerlotMe.

• Wendy from A Day in the Life on the Farm shares “Merlot: Smooth, Savory and Sustainable”
• Cindy at Grape Experiences shares “Comfort Food and Wines for Fall: Savory Slow Cooker Chicken and Classic Merlot”
• Camilla at Culinary Adventures with Camilla shares “Celebrating #MerlotME with Mushrooms, Truffles, and a Wine from a Cal Alumna”
• David at Cooking Chat shares “Everyday Pasta Sauce with Ground Beef and Chickpeas”
• Jane at Always Ravenous shares “Fall Food Pairings with Merlot”
• Robin at Crushed Grape Chronicles shares “#MerlotMe with figs, cherries and a nice grilled steak”
• Linda at My Full Wine Glass shares “Kicking off #MerlotMe month with Napa Valley wine and lasagna soup” 
• Jennifer at Vino Travels shares “Warm up with Merlot and Pappardelle Bolognese”
• Gwendolyn at Wine Predator…Gwendolyn Alley shares “Smoked Lamb/Beef Meatloaf Says #MerlotMe with Sonoma’s Decoy and Washington’s Pedastal”
• Susannah at Avvinare shares “Forever A Devoted Merlot Fan”
• Liz at What’s in that Bottle shares “Three Family-Owned Merlots for Fall”
• Terri at Our Good Life shares “Provencal Eggplant Stew + Decoy Merlot for #MerlotMe“
• Jeff at Food Wine Click! shares “Merlot and 40 Cloves of Garlic”