Merus

"When a wine is made from the most carefully chosen fruit, in very small quantities, with unsparing attention to detail, a new level of excellence becomes possible."

Merus vaulted to cult wine status when its first bottling, the 1998 Merus Cabernet Sauvignon, won a 93 score from wine critic Robert Parker, who called it “one of the finest wines of the vintage“, "an incredible coup for a first vintage,” according to The New York Times.

Since then Merus Cabernet Sauvignon has continued to receive ratings in the 90s from Parker’s Wine Advocate, The Wine Spectator, and other critics. Because of the winery’s very small production, Merus is normally only available on allocation to current members of their mailing list and typically only during the year of release.

Their long-term relationships with a small group of Napa Valley growers allow them to dictate exacting standards for yield size, pruning, irrigation, and other aspects of winegrowing. In these dozen or so vineyard parcels, some as small as six rows, they monitor development almost grape by grape, waiting to pick until the fruit is at peak ripeness, with fully developed flavors and textures. They pick multiple times over several weeks, even in the smallest parcels, to capture that elusive moment between not quite ready and over-ripe, the moment when each berry reaches optimal concentration and power.

www.meruswines.com