Youthful purple-red color. Evolved Bordeauxish flavors but generously so, a perfect intersection of savory and sweet with loads of tradition applied to new world fruit. Excellent for current drinking, needs decanting only to remove sediment.
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Finally. Back in 2001 my wife and I had a wow experience with meerlust in the first year of our relation. After that it as been disappointments with bad cork, dull bottles or simply underwhelming wine. This was my last bottle from the cellar and at 17 years of age - Meerlust finally delivered and reminded us of that great experience so many years ago. Composed, grainy tannins and gorgeous sweet fruit. Lovely.
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My first impression is a huge similarity to what I would expect from a good Bordeaux from the same vintage. Which to me demonstrates how fine a Bordeaux blend this is, and how well it has kept for its 17 years. Stored in cellars since arriving in the UK, decanting 1 hour revealed a small amount of sediment. The colour is quite garnet with little browning. There is still good fruit, however the nose shows more of sloes and some minerality. The palate is earthy and rich, with some sweetness from the fruit. Absolutely beautiful with fillet of beef. A real pleasure to drink.
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Lovely consistency in the glass, a mid-red. Red fruit, smoky cedarwood nose if a little muted. Palate attacks with fairly elegant red fruit, then a good dollop of tannic raisiny fruit, showing some age. Fairly long, smooth.
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A fairly serious wine, but not living up to my high hopes prompted by Meerlust’s self-image as the antipodean Petrus. This vintage is a few years before the American marketing consultants got at the South African producers and made them dumb down their reds to California standards of timidity; so it’s not too light, though it has a surprisingly watery component to the finish. I think the problem here is that Meerlust tried to build a heavy load of fruit but without the foundation of stony minerality that Bordeaux offers. Nor does it have the sharp fiber of rosemary and fynbos from which many Cape reds benefit (a mark of that terroir, and an adequate structural substitute for Bordeaux stone). The berry and tar flavours are there, but without the structural elements, they come off as faintly cloying, leading to dangerous thoughts of cough syrup. (Note: 1999-2000 was an exceptionally hot summer in the Cape, with abundant bush fires, so this may have made even the hot-weather Cab Sauv grapes a bit unsubtle. Possibly unrepresentative vintage, therefore.) 24 HOURS LATER: well, what a difference. The rosemary/fynbos is now out in the open and provides adequate structure. The wateriness around the edges is gone, and we now have a thick, creamy, roasted-raspberry Bordeaux style, though now, with the fynbos, distinctly South African. It’s in The Vergelegen territory. So, seriously folks, use a big decanter or open this stuff 24 hours before the party. (Last word: there's surprisingly little Cab Sauv characteristics in the flavor -- not much of the classic dried fruit and paprika. It seems much more Cab Franc-driven -- fresher, plummier fruits. Matter of taste.)
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Really good once it had a chance to breathe and for the wood to fade. Needed decanting and filtering, but now an excellent, rich wine. Top SA wine according to SL, who thinks hold other bottles for 2 - 5 years.
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Lots of dark fruit and some vanilla on the nose. Right out of the bottle the palette is very tannic with some leather, earth, a bit of cherry and some obvious oak. Fairly long finish with cherry and earth predominating. Either needs air or aging, but is pleasant and tastes like it will get better as the tannics soften and the oak integrates.
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Straight out of the bottle this wine was very tannic but I gave it 3 hours in the decanter and it has really opened up. On the nose spicey, dark fruits, some vanilla and burnt charcoal. In the mouth the tannins are still fairly abundant and this wine has quite a bit of grip to it showing that there are a few years of aging ahead but there is also a fullness to the ripe fruit that makes this wine drinkable now if you were so inclined. Taste is peppery with tangy dark fruit, spices, cherries and a bit of earth. Fairly full in the mouth. This really needs more time for the secondary characteristics to develop - probably another 2 years minimum. Overall slightly disappointing but that is probably because my expectation was somewhat high. Still a good wine but leave it in the cellar for now.
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Meerlust Rubicon Vertical (Caldesi, London): This is less floral than the 2001, which much more blackberry fruit: there's much, much more fruit on the nose. There's much more obvious fruit on the palate too, and it doesn't have the complexity of th 2001. The tannins seem a bit less integrated than the 2001, and some of the flavours feel a bit separate. Much simpler than the 2001. Very Good.
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Meerlust Rubicon Offline (Caldesi, London): Slightly fuller, deeper colour than the 2001. Quite closed on the nose. Tannic grip on the attack, slightly grainy. Starting to open up a bit to a slightly savoury nose. Quite an acidic finish. A little simplistic. 2+
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Inky dark with ruby edges. The nose has licorice, pepper, vanilla, cigar box. Big in the mouth, but not explosive fruit. Strong tannins (perhaps another year or three might help), with strong vanilla, plums, cigar box, and toasted coconut. There is clar terroir here, not just another fruit bomb. Very long finish, coating the teeth and redolent of tart plums and tobacco.
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Deep brick in colour, with a slight green note on the nose. I thought it was quite forgetable and rather international tasting - could have been from anywhere. Very disappointing- good thing this group didn't ask the person who brought the worst bottle to pay for the lunch (B)!!
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Dark blood red color with hints of purple, pink on the edge (5/5). Beautifully opulent on the nose with cigarbox, tobacco, smoke, plums violets, and hints of cedar (12/15). Nice fullbodied mouthfeel with good grip in the tannins. This is a wine with great aging potential (10/10) On the palate the wine shows great nuance with dried fruit, tobacco, chocolate, cedar and smoke. (16/20) A very well made wine from a great producer. 93 pts
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8/25/2021 - Neecies Likes this wine:
Youthful purple-red color. Evolved Bordeauxish flavors but generously so, a perfect intersection of savory and sweet with loads of tradition applied to new world fruit. Excellent for current drinking, needs decanting only to remove sediment.
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6/22/2018 - waynediam Likes this wine: 88 Points
Well bodied, full flavour
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9/22/2017 - NiklasT Likes this wine: 92 Points
Finally. Back in 2001 my wife and I had a wow experience with meerlust in the first year of our relation. After that it as been disappointments with bad cork, dull bottles or simply underwhelming wine. This was my last bottle from the cellar and at 17 years of age - Meerlust finally delivered and reminded us of that great experience so many years ago. Composed, grainy tannins and gorgeous sweet fruit. Lovely.
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5/5/2017 - NiklasT wrote: flawed
corked, pity some nice sweet fruit behind the taint.
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2/27/2017 - Keith Cooper Likes this wine: 93 Points
My first impression is a huge similarity to what I would expect from a good Bordeaux from the same vintage. Which to me demonstrates how fine a Bordeaux blend this is, and how well it has kept for its 17 years. Stored in cellars since arriving in the UK, decanting 1 hour revealed a small amount of sediment. The colour is quite garnet with little browning. There is still good fruit, however the nose shows more of sloes and some minerality. The palate is earthy and rich, with some sweetness from the fruit. Absolutely beautiful with fillet of beef. A real pleasure to drink.
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7/1/2016 - vinelouse wrote: 91 Points
Not at its prime but still nice
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1/20/2013 - gravelld Likes this wine: 89 Points
Lovely consistency in the glass, a mid-red. Red fruit, smoky cedarwood nose if a little muted. Palate attacks with fairly elegant red fruit, then a good dollop of tannic raisiny fruit, showing some age. Fairly long, smooth.
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1/6/2013 - NiklasT Likes this wine: 87 Points
Not much on the nose, evolved with resolved tannins. Ok wine giving aged, harmonious experience but not much complexity.
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7/11/2012 - NiklasT wrote: 86 Points
Not much fruit left and little complexity, drink rest soon.
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3/30/2011 - Reiff wrote: 91 Points
A fairly serious wine, but not living up to my high hopes prompted by Meerlust’s self-image as the antipodean Petrus. This vintage is a few years before the American marketing consultants got at the South African producers and made them dumb down their reds to California standards of timidity; so it’s not too light, though it has a surprisingly watery component to the finish. I think the problem here is that Meerlust tried to build a heavy load of fruit but without the foundation of stony minerality that Bordeaux offers. Nor does it have the sharp fiber of rosemary and fynbos from which many Cape reds benefit (a mark of that terroir, and an adequate structural substitute for Bordeaux stone). The berry and tar flavours are there, but without the structural elements, they come off as faintly cloying, leading to dangerous thoughts of cough syrup. (Note: 1999-2000 was an exceptionally hot summer in the Cape, with abundant bush fires, so this may have made even the hot-weather Cab Sauv grapes a bit unsubtle. Possibly unrepresentative vintage, therefore.) 24 HOURS LATER: well, what a difference. The rosemary/fynbos is now out in the open and provides adequate structure. The wateriness around the edges is gone, and we now have a thick, creamy, roasted-raspberry Bordeaux style, though now, with the fynbos, distinctly South African. It’s in The Vergelegen territory. So, seriously folks, use a big decanter or open this stuff 24 hours before the party. (Last word: there's surprisingly little Cab Sauv characteristics in the flavor -- not much of the classic dried fruit and paprika. It seems much more Cab Franc-driven -- fresher, plummier fruits. Matter of taste.)
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1/23/2010 - dgroo wrote: 94 Points
Really good once it had a chance to breathe and for the wood to fade. Needed decanting and filtering, but now an excellent, rich wine. Top SA wine according to SL, who thinks hold other bottles for 2 - 5 years.
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3/4/2009 - QwertyMIDX wrote:
Lots of dark fruit and some vanilla on the nose. Right out of the bottle the palette is very tannic with some leather, earth, a bit of cherry and some obvious oak. Fairly long finish with cherry and earth predominating. Either needs air or aging, but is pleasant and tastes like it will get better as the tannics soften and the oak integrates.
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2/20/2009 - michelvl wrote: 85 Points
disappointed with a tannic and astryngent wine. nomaly the SA wines deliver but this one didn't. will not be buying this again.
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2/13/2009 - gravelld wrote:
Full and thick, complex fruit and whiffs of pear drop acidity. Plenty of fine grained tannin. Good for another ten years. Very good / excellent.
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4/19/2008 - Fat cat wrote: 90 Points
This didn't disapoint, a classic bordeaux style - medium body, good fruit, fresh in the mouth.
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1/19/2008 - pjaines wrote: 87 Points
Straight out of the bottle this wine was very tannic but I gave it 3 hours in the decanter and it has really opened up. On the nose spicey, dark fruits, some vanilla and burnt charcoal. In the mouth the tannins are still fairly abundant and this wine has quite a bit of grip to it showing that there are a few years of aging ahead but there is also a fullness to the ripe fruit that makes this wine drinkable now if you were so inclined. Taste is peppery with tangy dark fruit, spices, cherries and a bit of earth. Fairly full in the mouth. This really needs more time for the secondary characteristics to develop - probably another 2 years minimum. Overall slightly disappointing but that is probably because my expectation was somewhat high. Still a good wine but leave it in the cellar for now.
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11/2/2007 - aof wrote: 90 Points
pop and pour. nice nose of pepper, cedar, leather and tobacco. medium body, complex, dark rasberries with robust tannins. good finish. a definite buy.
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6/9/2007 - andrewstevenson.com wrote: 87 Points
Meerlust Rubicon Vertical (Caldesi, London): This is less floral than the 2001, which much more blackberry fruit: there's much, much more fruit on the nose. There's much more obvious fruit on the palate too, and it doesn't have the complexity of th 2001. The tannins seem a bit less integrated than the 2001, and some of the flavours feel a bit separate. Much simpler than the 2001. Very Good.
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6/9/2007 - SimonG wrote:
Meerlust Rubicon Offline (Caldesi, London): Slightly fuller, deeper colour than the 2001. Quite closed on the nose. Tannic grip on the attack, slightly grainy. Starting to open up a bit to a slightly savoury nose. Quite an acidic finish. A little simplistic. 2+
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5/5/2007 - dhonig wrote: 91 Points
Inky dark with ruby edges. The nose has licorice, pepper, vanilla, cigar box. Big in the mouth, but not explosive fruit. Strong tannins (perhaps another year or three might help), with strong vanilla, plums, cigar box, and toasted coconut. There is clar terroir here, not just another fruit bomb. Very long finish, coating the teeth and redolent of tart plums and tobacco.
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2/24/2007 - JohnSh wrote: 84 Points
Deep brick in colour, with a slight green note on the nose. I thought it was quite forgetable and rather international tasting - could have been from anywhere. Very disappointing- good thing this group didn't ask the person who brought the worst bottle to pay for the lunch (B)!!
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3/31/2006 - Sommelier81 wrote: 93 Points
Dark blood red color with hints of purple, pink on the edge (5/5). Beautifully opulent on the nose with cigarbox, tobacco, smoke, plums violets, and hints of cedar (12/15). Nice fullbodied mouthfeel with good grip in the tannins. This is a wine with great aging potential (10/10) On the palate the wine shows great nuance with dried fruit, tobacco, chocolate, cedar and smoke. (16/20) A very well made wine from a great producer. 93 pts
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