This may be slightly improved from last bottle 3 years ago, but it's not very good. On opening, it's still oaky, with the fruit completely hidden. A couple hours or air and the oak is better, but the middle is absent, almost watery, and some bitterness arrives. Is this just the result of a poor vintage? (Note: much better on second night. Nice camphor, sandalwood finish. It may simply be best to give this a long time to come around.)
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another WTSO dudd. i was expecting a lot more from this Howell Mountain effort. the wine is unexceptional in every way. deep purple/crimson in color and medium bodied. the nose is more or less closed (even an hour and a half later). on the palate are plum, cherry, and a hint of oak. very little structure or backbone, the wines fades quickly on the palate and is lacking in any kind of meaningful complexity. enough said!
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First night: Agree with previous review - an over oaked mess. Decanted for about an hour. Black cherry and vanilla on the nose, but all vanilla and bitter tannins in the mouth.
Second night: considerably better. Vanilla had subsided quite a bit and the tannins had softened and integrated. Although still a strange combination of sweet vanilla and bitter. Think I'll sit on our remaining bottles - not missing anything by drinking now. Pretty disappointed overall.
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First night: an over-oaked mess. Nose is berries and caramel. The palate does show some fruit, but it is hidden behind caramel and buttery-popcorn oakiness. The finish is noticeably bitter (ear wax) from either the oak or the extraction. Second night: Oak is much better now, bitterness is lessened but still there. I can detect some mountain fruit notes, where I couldn't the first night. I'm planning to keep the last 2 bottles for several more years before trying this again. Score is average of two nights: 80 and 88.
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Mid crimson with a light ruby rim. Intense nose of blackcurrant and boysenberry, vanilla and a hint of bell pepper when first poured at cellar temperature. On the palate more blackcurrants and cranberries, high acid with chalky mouth-drying tannins. Fruit forward with enough structure to provide counter-balance. Long finish. The alcoholic heat is a tad too prominent, as can befall big wines like this one.
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I have now had two bottles of this Howell Mountain Merlot and I just keep saying wow. Deep ruby color- very dark hues. On the nose is an intoxicating fruit and sweetness note- almost a caramel scent.
The taste is just as rewarding- a very well balanced wine with plenty of back bone, I would say this merlot stands up to some cabs in punch factor. Drinking very well now- easily can age another 10 years.
I purchased this Merlot from WTSO for about $23 a bottle. This is fantastic Merlot. The grapes come from the well-known and revered Howell Mountain. As I poured the bottle into the decanter, I tasted just the last drop out of the bottle as a pre-taste. A hint of buttery flavor and awesome juiciness. Let decant about 30 minutes and then BOOM luscious flavor. This, for me, is a must-have Merlot. Fruity, with just the right amount of tannins and oak flavor definitely not a mild merlot but also not quite as in your face as a Duckhorn or PlumpJack. For the price-to-quality ratio, I'd put it on par with the Pahlmeyer Merlot I recently reviewed but at a fraction of the cost. Delicious!
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11/24/2023 - Cool_Hand_Luke Likes this wine: 92 Points
Drinking very nicely! Drank with Thanksgiving dinner (the 2nd day) and it was a fantastic pairing!
Thank you WTSO for this Cellar Tracker gem!
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4/10/2020 - BBinSC wrote: 87 Points
86-88: well it might taste oaky, old, and thin; or maybe it's an homage to St. Emilion? Either way, drink up!
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11/27/2019 - southpaw25 Likes this wine: 90 Points
Much better this time around.
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9/22/2019 - Quarked wrote: 84 Points
This may be slightly improved from last bottle 3 years ago, but it's not very good. On opening, it's still oaky, with the fruit completely hidden. A couple hours or air and the oak is better, but the middle is absent, almost watery, and some bitterness arrives. Is this just the result of a poor vintage? (Note: much better on second night. Nice camphor, sandalwood finish. It may simply be best to give this a long time to come around.)
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4/17/2019 - vinus_operandi Does not like this wine: 88 Points
another WTSO dudd. i was expecting a lot more from this Howell Mountain effort. the wine is unexceptional in every way. deep purple/crimson in color and medium bodied. the nose is more or less closed (even an hour and a half later). on the palate are plum, cherry, and a hint of oak. very little structure or backbone, the wines fades quickly on the palate and is lacking in any kind of meaningful complexity. enough said!
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3/13/2019 - ncsuguys wrote:
Brad-nice medium body merlot. Nice to drink alone but would go well with dinner. Tannins are medium. Nice movie night wine for $21.
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2/20/2018 - e.Rock wrote: 86 Points
First night: Agree with previous review - an over oaked mess. Decanted for about an hour. Black cherry and vanilla on the nose, but all vanilla and bitter tannins in the mouth.
Second night: considerably better. Vanilla had subsided quite a bit and the tannins had softened and integrated. Although still a strange combination of sweet vanilla and bitter. Think I'll sit on our remaining bottles - not missing anything by drinking now. Pretty disappointed overall.
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11/29/2016 - Quarked wrote: 84 Points
First night: an over-oaked mess. Nose is berries and caramel. The palate does show some fruit, but it is hidden behind caramel and buttery-popcorn oakiness. The finish is noticeably bitter (ear wax) from either the oak or the extraction. Second night: Oak is much better now, bitterness is lessened but still there. I can detect some mountain fruit notes, where I couldn't the first night. I'm planning to keep the last 2 bottles for several more years before trying this again. Score is average of two nights: 80 and 88.
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10/8/2016 - DavidWong168 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Mid crimson with a light ruby rim. Intense nose of blackcurrant and boysenberry, vanilla and a hint of bell pepper when first poured at cellar temperature. On the palate more blackcurrants and cranberries, high acid with chalky mouth-drying tannins. Fruit forward with enough structure to provide counter-balance. Long finish. The alcoholic heat is a tad too prominent, as can befall big wines like this one.
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7/21/2016 - John Novak wrote:
Very nice bit young berry noise I liked it a lot
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6/28/2016 - danielolson06 Likes this wine: 93 Points
I have now had two bottles of this Howell Mountain Merlot and I just keep saying wow. Deep ruby color- very dark hues. On the nose is an intoxicating fruit and sweetness note- almost a caramel scent.
The taste is just as rewarding- a very well balanced wine with plenty of back bone, I would say this merlot stands up to some cabs in punch factor. Drinking very well now- easily can age another 10 years.
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6/10/2016 - trevor.gillespie Likes this wine:
I purchased this Merlot from WTSO for about $23 a bottle. This is fantastic Merlot. The grapes come from the well-known and revered Howell Mountain. As I poured the bottle into the decanter, I tasted just the last drop out of the bottle as a pre-taste. A hint of buttery flavor and awesome juiciness. Let decant about 30 minutes and then BOOM luscious flavor. This, for me, is a must-have Merlot. Fruity, with just the right amount of tannins and oak flavor definitely not a mild merlot but also not quite as in your face as a Duckhorn or PlumpJack. For the price-to-quality ratio, I'd put it on par with the Pahlmeyer Merlot I recently reviewed but at a fraction of the cost. Delicious!
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