Clos Pegase Merlot Carneros Mitsuko's Vineyard 2005

Classic blackberry jam and chocolate nose, very perfumed - violets, leather, cigarbox. Extremely ripe, concentrated, saturated black fruits, especially cassis, absolutely gorgeous, with great length and finesse. Wide open, full-bore fruit.

The dark ruby-colored 1997 Merlot is far better than the 1996. One can see Ted Lemon's hand in the fatter, richer, more textured and layered mid-palate. This plump wine reveals berry fruit intermixed with chocolate and notes of underbrush. The wine's excellent finish exhibits well-integrated wood and lower acidity that the tart 1996. The 1997 should drink well for 5-7 years.

A first-rate wine, totally flattering in the mouth, and addictively delicious. It's not big, but restrained and stylish, reining in the blackberry fruit to match a rich overlay of oak. The texture is a marvel, smooth and complex, all the way through the long, distinguished finish.

Tightly built, this wine maintains the tension of its structure as it builds in complexity with air. When first opened it show intensity through potent, clay-mineral tannin and a floral perfume. If black rose could be a fruit flavor, this Merlot has it, and it keeps pumping that flavor through a lasting finish. By the next day, the tight structure is still there, though the wine has grown more expansive, its black flavor targeting roast suckling pig or something equally fat and round.

Captures in style the personality of the vintage - ripe, robust and very forward with lots of showy fruit flavors and soft, friendly tannins. It's 100% estate grown, primarily from Mitsuko's Vineyard in Carneros, but blended with a small percentage sourced from their Home Ranch in Calistoga. It is 98% Merlot and 3% Cabernet Sauvignon, aged for 20 months in French oak, then bottled unfiltered to retain all of its flavor. Clos Pegase is one of the first producers of Carneros Merlot and this wine amply demonstrates the advantages of growing Merlot in a cooler climate, where shallow soils and long "hang-time" produce wines of great depth and balance.

This is the kind of Merlot that shows how well Carneros can ripen the variety. It's a big, rich wine, almost fat in gooey black cherry, mocha and anise flavors, but is fortunately balanced with rich, furry tannins. It's a bit soft, but very tasty.

Dark, rich and focused, with a pretty array of currant, blackberry, cedar and earth tones that combine to give it complexity and depth, with a beefy edge. Drink now through 2008.