The Wine Camp Blog

1999 Il Tesoro Merlot by Terrabianca

Making Marvelous Maremma Merlot

There is a lot of terrible merlot out there. The fashion stampede to merlot wines by consumers means that merlot vines have been stuck in every place possible. The problem is that merlot is a lot pickier about its neighborhood than cabernet sauvignon and more often than not produces thin or weedy tasting wines: potentially both. Considering the reason merlot became popular in the first place was its ability to create round, rich wines that are easy to appreciate, it is strange that people drink so much bitter, watery merlot. Somebody is not paying attention to what they put in their mouths.

However there are many great merlot wines produced in the world, but you have to search a bit to find them and we you do you have to be prepared to pay for them. Petrus in Bordeaux remains the king of merlot wines fetching prices beyond famous names like Lafite and Latour – the 2000 currently sells for $1400 a bottle: if you can find it. Pomerol and St. Emilion produce many great merlot based wines, but while merlot is the most widely planted variety in Bordeaux the vast majority of the wines produced from those vines are commercial-grade grocery store wines priced for everyday consumption.

While it gained its fame in Bordeaux, it is hard to find an important vineyard growing region in the world where it does not represent a significant or growing part of the total acreage of vines. So far only the Germans seem to be holding the line. Millions and millions of bottles with the name merlot on the front are pouring forth from South America, Australia, the United States and, unfortunately, Italy.

Italian merlot has been the worst of all. Northeastern Italy has been the source of an unending flow of the worst examples of thin, herbal merlot. The reason most of this wine is so terrible are the incredible levels of over-cropping allowed. High yields always make for bad wines, but in the case of merlot they create wines that are almost undrinkable – but people are drinking them anyway. Thousands of Italian restaurants in the USA and the UK offer these putrid wines as their “house” Italian merlot and these wines should be avoided at all costs. When you see restaurants that are willing to put these Italian jug merlot wines in your wine glass you should also beware of what they are willing to put on your plate.

Yet all is not lost for Italian merlot as small estates are popping up everywhere with producers willing to seek just the right vineyards in just the right climate and to severely cut back production. In a dramatic contrast with most Italian merlot these producers are making dramatic wines that challenge the best of Bordeaux and surpass even the best of the new world bottles.

Il Tesoro in the Tuscan Maremma region is one of the best of those wines. This estate is owned by the extraordinary Chianti Classico estate Terrabianca, whose dedication to excellence is well established. This is a wine that deserves the attention of serious collectors and those who like to fool their tasting groups – few will guess this concentrated wine is a merlot.

Tasting Notes: 1999 Il Tesoro Merlot by Terrabianca
Dark rich ruby with a touch of purple. Just barely translucent. Ripe, earthy, smoky, plum aromas laced with tar and sweet dark cherries. Firm yet mouth filling. The tannins are up-front in this young wine and open into intense bitter cherry followed by round, ripe sweet plum flavors which are spiced up with a tobacco tang. A dramatic wine throughout: the finish is long and powerful with great depth and complexity. Firm tannins linger along with the bright fruit. Oak and tarry flavors linger in the extremely long finish. This wine needs 5 to 7 years aging to show its best and I would wait at least ten if you have the patience.