Twomey Merlot
On one of my trips to Napa in ‘07 I brought home a trilogy of Twomey Merlot. Being a huge fan of Silver Oak (which in my opinion is one of the most consistent wines in extraordinary quality) Fitz at North Hills Total Wine (great friend and smart wine guy) introduced me to their Merlot and just like Silver Oak, it was love at first smell and sip! Now what does Silver Oak Cabernet have to do with this Merlot you wonder? To begin with, Twomey Cellars is owned by the Duncan family, founders of Silver Oak.
In the late 60’s, Raymond Twomey Duncan came to the Napa Valley and after meeting winemaker Justin Meyern Silver Oak was born. I am not sure when but I think it was around 1999 that the family bought Soda Canyon Ranch in Napa to grow Cab fruit for Silver Oak. It soon became clear that the blocks planted to Merlot was producing top notch fruit and worthy of their winemaking and a label. They didn’t want to spoil the well known and respected Silver Oak label, reserving that for their Cabernets, so they dedicated the label to Ray Duncan’s mother’s maiden name, Twomey. Another star was born and in 2003 Twomey moved to their current location in Calistoga right off of Hwy 29. They also have a location in Healdsburg, Russian River Valley.
Unlike Silver Oak, Twomey is now producing other varietals which I have yet to try. In 2000 they bought nine acres in the Russian River Valley, the West Pin Vineyard. From here they get fruit for their Pinot Noirs. Since then they have branched out and now have a 2nd winery in Healdsburg and today Ben Cane is the winemaker who oversees their Pinot Noir’s. The four Pinot’s they offer are from Sonoma Coast, Russian River Valley, Anderson Valley and Santa Barbara County. Their newest baby is a Sauvignon Blanc that comes from the family’s estate vineyard in Calistoga.
I love the Cheers! Event St Helena puts on the first Friday of each month in the high season months to celebrate the winemakers. Between 6-9 they close the streets off and the local stores have over 60 wineries come in and pour for your tasting pleasure! My last visit in October Twomey was pouring and was one of the most popular tables yet they made time to chat with me and share more stories. Now not only the wine is top notch but I can tell you, so are the people.
As we are all still celebrating this holiday season and sharing our “good stuff” with those we love, last night was no exception. My dear friend and fellow wine lover Alan made me and two girlfriends (lucky guy) an amazing dinner, homemade Chicken Marsala. Not only is Alan a wine lover but an excellent cook and very generous with sharing his collection – so it was time to open my collection to him. As I sat there and watched him cook (love having a man in my kitchen while I did nothing) we popped open a bottle of 2000 Estate Far Niente but it had to settle down some so pop, there goes a bottle of ‘05 Baldacci Ruppert. While both are exception wines together we decided our palate wanted something more robust, and knowing we had two more ladies coming soon to join us I went straight to my Twomey, oh and I am glad I did.
We first had the 2001 which was a treat, especially since Alan has not had the Twomey before. He couldn’t believe this was a Merlot, not like many of the grape-juicy Merlots that are out there. Merlots are traditionally a very fruit forward wine and in blends a little goes a long way. The 2001 we detected a bit of spice and smoke but not too much where it tasted out of place. I would say the same style as Silver Oak with a strong American Oak on the nose and palate which I personally love. I find this wine to be a medium to full bodied wine, very balanced with great length and a lengthy finish of vanilla and chocolate that pleased my palate immensely. There is 6% Cabernet Franc in the 2001. Cab Francs tend to be a little more aromatic and can add a bit more to the nose.
The 2002 proved to be even better – more robust and flavorful, elegant yet complex like a true lady! Spice, coffee, cherries, chocolate…..I love chocolate covered cherries and boy do I wish I had a box while drinking this one. The finish is one that makes you just want to sit there, hold your glass in hand after taking a sip, close your eyes and enjoy the moment. The 2002 added only 0.6% of Cab Franc. Both to me are built much like a Cab and will really pleasantly surprise you non-Merlot drinkers.
What’s next? Well I have the 2003 sitting there all alone now – poor guy!
Cheers!
