Switchback to Merlot

It’s hard to be a Merlot these days

For years, many wine connoisseurs dismissed Merlots from California as bland and characterless–so much so that it was probably the most memorable line from the movie Sideways: “…if anyone orders Merlot, I’m leaving.”

But despite the disdain, Merlot continues to have its fans. Winemakers like Bob Foley see this as a winemaking challenge. And, in many cases, especially that of the Napa-nicknamed Mr. Merlot, it’s clear he is up to the challenge. Among his many winners is the 2006 Switchback Ridge Merlot, which folks are just starting to enjoy now.

Maestro of Merlot

Foley is likely one of the most respected winemakers out there these days. Food and Wine magazine named him Winemaker of the Year in 2007. Robert Parker declared him one of his “Wine Personalities of the Year in 2002.” And the reason he is constantly being recognized is because, as Parker wrote, he has “an undeniable talent for producing wines of great richness and intensity yet keeping them reasonably light on their feet.”

His parents had their own backyard winery in Contra Costa county east of San Francisco, but he credits his studies in enology and viticulture at UC-Davis and specifically a barrel sample he tasted from Inglenook Charbono in 1968 that “rocked” his world and inspired him to be the winemaker of high standards that he is today.

Since the mid-1990s, Foley has been known for consistently producing great reds besides his Merlots. However, it’s probably his commitment to conquering the Merlot that is notably unusual. Perhaps that’s why his Merlots have come to taste much richer and more densely flavored – more in the vein of a Cabernet. He has taken, what many consider to be a mediocre grape meant for blending, and turned it into a respectable varietal. In 2005, Wine Spectator wrote, “…Foley’s Merlots have been enormously concentrated, the kind of ripe, expressive wines that so many California wine drinkers prize. Foley’s affinity for the grape led to a remarkable mastery.”

Working the vines

Foley’s great wines, like so many others’, begin in the vineyard. With Switchback Ridge, northeast of St. Helena in Napa Valley and owned by John and Kelly Peterson, Foley praises the rocky, light soil and breezes that buffer the heat. The vines are now 16 years old, and Foley is constantly in the vineyard, making sure the grapes get what they need to produce the final product he seeks.

“Mountainous well-drained soils and the exposures of high elevations combine to concentrate aroma and flavor, as well as color and density, in wine grapes,” Foley has said in the past about his approach to the vineyard. “This results in some of the most expressive wines imaginable. Traditional techniques and hands-on care, serve to elevate the remarkable character of our wines…”

Other winemakers, such as Richard Arrowood have agreed that the key to good Merlot is having well-drained soil, making sure the grapes have good sun exposure and thinning the crop, comparing the careful work of Merlot grapes to that required of Pinot Noir.

An example of Merlot mastery

About his wines, Foley has said, “I want them to be enjoyable when they’re young and hopefully they can age very well. But vintages vary. There are vintages that start out with a lot of pizzazz and then fizzle out. Others start out slowly and develop into a swan.”

The 2006 Switchback Ridge Merlot is one of those enigma wines. It is dark, lush, muscular with notes of dark chocolate and casis. It’s great now and will get even better over the next few years.

Robert Parker praises its “evolved dark plum/garnet color” and the flavors of “chocolate and ripe berry fruit,” calling it charming and sensual. However, he, like participants on a vinocellar.com discussion board, note its lightness. It’s meant to be drunk over the next four or five years, and the vinocellar.com chatterers believe it will be much better in the next two or three years.

Perhaps, this is the sign again of the wonderful complexity that Bob Foley has been able to bring to the much-maligned Merlot. He has found a way to turn this Merlot into a beautiful Cabernet-like swan.

Hinsdalecellars.com is offering Bob Foley’s 2006 Switchback Ridge Merlot at an astonishing $49.99 a bottle. Switchback to Merlot here.

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