Merryvale & Starmont
Napa Valley: World Class

Merryvale Vineyards is a family-owned Napa Valley winery dedicated to passionate winemaking and sustainable farming. For the past 25 years Merryvale has been turning exceptional Napa Valley grapes into world class wine. Merryvale is world renowned for rich, powerful Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay, the iconic Bordeaux-style red blend Profile, and the everyday-drinking, fruit-driven brand, Starmont. Merryvale’s historic building was the first winery built in the Napa Valley after the repeal of Prohibition in 1933, and has become a must see attraction for visitors to the valley.

Merryvale is committed to protecting and preserving the environment through conservation, renewable energy and sustainable farming practices at their three estate vineyards. Merryvale has received Napa Green Vineyard, Napa Green Winery and Bay Area Green Business certifications.

We've long been fans of Merryvale, one of Napa's brightest shining stars in our opinion. And, while Merryvale's prestige cuvées received much well-deserved recognition, the Starmont series has been offering serious value and quality since 1985. While competitors in the "fighting varietal" categories have come and gone, the Starmont wines maintain a strong go-to presence. Why? Because they taste fantastic and it's difficult to find this much class for under $20 in the Napa Valley.

STARMONT 2012 SAUVIGNON BLANC NAPA VALLEY

Sauvignon Blanc is typically aromatic and crisp, and it’s hard to get both of these qualities at a friendly price point...but not with this bottling! Starmont ferments their Sauvignon Blanc in both French oak and stainless steel; something usually found in more expensive bottlings. So this wine becomes a great value at under $15! Sourced from several distinct regions in Napa Valley (including Oak Knoll and Rutherford), the wine is pale straw in color with brilliant clarity. The aromas are of lime leaf, grapefruit, passion fruit, guava, ripe melon, orange blossom, slate and some background varietal herbal notes. The crisp entry leads to a full mid-palate with bright fruit flavors supported by generous natural acidity and layers of citrus, melon and passion fruit.

$14.95 750ml [241540]

STARMONT 2009 CHARDONNAY NAPA VALLEY

Starmont’s Napa Valley Chardonnay has the hand print of its sister winery. It comes from the cooler regions of Napa Valley, is fermented in stainless steel and oak barrels, and goes through complete secondary fermentation for richness. The fruit was carefully sorted and whole cluster pressed to preserve freshness. The light oak treatment gives a round mouth feel and improved complexity, while highlighting the fruit driven focus of the wine. The wine shows intense aromas of mandarin orange, fresh pear, melon, apple butter, spice and honey. The mouth feel is soft, round and fleshy with a long layered finish.

$14.98 750ml [241590]

STARMONT 2009 CABERNET SAUVIGNON NAPA VALLEY

This is a standout in the winery’s lineup, and that’s because Starmont uses techniques found in Cabernets that cost exponentially more money than this! Fruit was harvested in the early morning to preserve fresh flavors and keep the skins intact. Upon arrival at the winery, the grapes were carefully sorted and de-stemmed, but not crushed so oxidation (which gives “off” flavors) would be minimal. Aged for 16 months in French oak, the wine is a dark red with good density, along with aromas of sweet red and black currants, brambly blackberry jam, black olive, dried herbs and violets. While the initial entry is soft and round, the structure builds along with toasty oak notes and a good lengthy finish.

$18.98 750ml [241680]

MERRYVALE 2011 CHARDONNAY CARNEROS

Merryvale’s Carneros Chardonnay comes from the same vineyards as their Silhouette bottling; Stanly Ranch and Hyde Vineyards. The main difference is with the Carneros bottling is the time spent in barrel (here, it is 10 months) and the percentage of new wood (42%). The grapes are carefully sorted, whole cluster pressed, barrel fermented, with the first seven months on primary lees, and is stirred monthly until blending. As a result, this vibrant gold colored Chardonnay mineral/wet stone aromas along with notes of tangerine, orange blossom mango, papaya, fresh pineapple, baked apple, pear, and vanilla. Framed by sweet toasty oak, this has a round, fleshy mid-palate, great fruit concentration, lively acidity, and an elegant finish.

$27.95 750ml [241610]

MERRYVALE 2010 “SILHOUETTE” CHARDONNAY NAPA VALLEY

Silhouette is Merryvale’s limited production, top white wine and contains their very best Napa Valley and Carneros Chardonnay fruit, including grapes from Stanly Ranch Estate Vineyard and the famed Hyde Vineyard. The grapes for Silhouette are handpicked, hand sorted and whole cluster pressed before undergoing native primary and malolactic fermentation in barrels with monthly stirring on the lees. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, this shows bright notes of tangerine, ripe peach, nectarine, and pineapple are complemented by rich notes of honey, nutmeg, toasted hazelnuts and vanilla bean crème brûlée. The lively entry leads into a concentrated, fruit driven mid-palate, with notes of citrus and ripe stone fruit. The finish is framed by notes of grilled apricots, subtle minerality and toasted brioche. This should gain complexity over the next 5-10 years.

$49.99 750ml [241450]

MERRYVALE 2011 PINOT NOIR CARNEROS

We’ve enjoyed the Cabernets and Chardonnays from Merryvale for some time, but this Pinot Noir is a new one to us. Yes, we may have been a bit skeptical, but one we tasted it, we became believers! This wine really does fire on all cylinders, and while this sells under $30 a bottle, we think it compares to others that reach that $40 price points! Merryvale carefully blended many different Pinot Noir clones in order to get good balance, freshness, richness, and flavors. Dark ruby red in color with some violet notes, this is a wine with good density and aromas of red cherry, cranberry, raspberry, baking spices, toasted hazelnut, and minerals. The palate is nuanced, with bright, focused fruit, good depth on the mid-palate, and is beautifully proportioned. Bravo!

$27.95 750ml [241420]

MERRYVALE 2009 CABERNET SAUVIGNON NAPA VALLEY

For some reason, it seems that many of the Napa Valley wineries are pricing their wines around the $50 price point. For that reason, this has become a very competitive field, and we pick apart every wine offered to us. But, when we tried Merryvale’s 2009 Cabernet, there was nothing bad to say…only praise! Turns out, this bottling uses fruit from two of our favorite vineyards in Napa Valley, Stagecoach and Kenefick Ranch! The fruit was hand-picked and triple sorted before undergoing extended maceration and a long, cool fermentation for increased flavor, color and aroma. The wine was aged for 22 months in 70% new French oak barrels, and was bottled unfined and unfiltered. This is dark purple in color with generous aromas of currants, blackberry, licorice, chocolate, black olive, espresso and vanilla. The wine is round and full on the palate with forward fruit and great structure from the balanced acid and tannins.

$59.95 750ml [241710]

MERRYVALE 2009 “PROFILE” PROPRIETARY RED NAPA VALLEY

Profile is Merryvale’s flagship red Bordeaux blend showcasing the very best fruit from each vintage. Most of the Cabernet Sauvignon and all of the Petit Verdot are sourced from their St. Helena Estate Vineyard, planted fifteen years ago under the direction of Michel Rolland, and David Abreu, with the balance coming from Larkmead and Stagecoach Vineyards. A blend of 87% Cabernet Sauvignon, 8% Petit Verdot, 3% Malbec, and 2% Cabernet Franc, only the best grapes are chosen for their concentration, depth of flavor and fine tannin structure to produce a wine that is rich, elegant and opulent. Aged for 21 months in 100% new French Oak barrels, and an additional year in bottle before release, the 2009 Profile shows powerful aromas of cassis, blackberry, raspberry liqueur, licorice, sweet vanilla bean, complex oak and baking spices, including cinnamon, nutmeg and cardamom. Upon entry on the palate, this wine displays a generous, mouth-coating texture, with very fine tannins and exceptional length. Profile is always capable of evolving for two decades and beyond, but it’s hard to resist right now!

$124.99 750ml [241430]

MERRYVALE NON-VINTAGE “ANTIGUA” DESSERT WINE 500ml

This is a truly unique and amazing desert wine from California! The grape used is called Muscat de Frontignan, and the wine is fortified with fine pot-still brandy, aged in French oak barrels and tanks. Like other fortified dessert wines, this is a multi-year blend, using vintages from 1970-1983 and 1992-1997. The wine is 18% alcohol, and has 11% residual sugar. It is golden/amber in color from its long aging in French oak, and the wine is a complex combination of nuts and orange-peel aromas. Thick and rich in the mouth, the nuts and orange-peel theme continues from the entry through the long finish, highlighted by the many subtleties from the fine brandy and time in the barrel. It’s a great paring with Tiramisu, Crème Brulée, Almond Biscotti, Hazelnut Torte, and Pecan Pie!

$28.99 500ml [241720]