Bonny Doon 'I'm Not Drinking Any $%&*#! Merlot' 2015

Poor old Merlot, this bottle name is exactly the kind of abuse it receives on a daily basis. It's all that Miles from Sideways' fault, having a pop at Merlot where it wasn't called for. "I only drink Pinot Noir!" What do you know Miles, you can't even get your manuscript published? Sorry Miles, that was uncalled for, we just hate people bullying Merlot. You see when done right, Merlot can be exceptional; wines such as this express wonderful natural acidity with aromas of fraise de bois, liquorice and gingerbread. Well done Bonny Doon you might just manage to make Merlot cool again.

While Bonny Doon Vineyard began with attempt to replicate Burgundy in California, Randall Grahm realized early on that he would have far more success creating more distinctive and original wines working with Rhône varieties in the Central Coast of California. The key learning here was that in a warm, Mediterranean climate, it is usually blended wines that are most successful. In 1986 Bonny Doon Vineyard released the inaugural vintage (1984) of Le Cigare Volant, an homage to Châteauneuf-du-Pape, and this continues as the winery’s flagship brand. Since then, Bonny Doon has enjoyed a long history of innovation – the first to truly popularize Rhône grapes in California, to successfully work with cryo-extraction for sundry “Vins de Glacière, the first to utilize microbullage in California, the first to popularize screwcaps for premium wines, and, quite significantly, the first to embrace true transparency in labelling with its ingredient labelling initiative. After expanding into the 28th Largest winery in the US, Randall Grahm decided he would be much happier with the wine Bonny Doon made if they downsized. Selling off some of the largest brands, now they focus on terroir driven wines with minimal intervention.