2016 Long Shadows Pedestal Merlot

Impressively complex with a clearly defined plummy essence, the 2016 Pedestal Vintage Select Reserve bursts out of the glass with aromas of dark cherry, juicy blackberry and complex oak tones of cinnamon, cardamom and vanilla, lifted by a chocolaty nuance, wet stone and dried spices. Full-bodied, complex and layered, the broad-shouldered wine has a velvety underbelly of dark chocolate-covered cherries before lifting tannins grip the gumline and palate and linger through to the finish. It’s a long, complex and multilayered wine that delivers pleasure at every turn. Give this stunning wine time in the wine cellar to come around. Yum!

Bright ruby-red. Complex, musky scents of black raspberry, plum, woodsmoke, cocoa powder, earth and leather. Broad and full-bodied on the palate, with its black fruit, menthol and spice flavors leavened by an element of medicinal reserve. This big, bone-dry wine finishes with serious mouthdusting tannins and lingering flavors of black fruits and spicy oak. The Merlot grapes held their acidity well in 2016, noted Gilles Nicault. (15.3% alcohol; made in an upright wood fermenter, then aged in 85% new oak; 3.77 pH)

The 2016 Pedestal Merlot has a precise nose of dusty plum, red flowers and soft oak tones with an elegant aroma of pencil lead fluttering about. The medium to full-bodied palate is clean and correct, with plush dark red fruit, dusty tannins, purple flowers and soft oak spices of vanilla, cardamom and nutmeg. The wine ends with a long, thoughtful, well-balanced finish that delivers complexity and pleasure simultaneously. Michel Rolland made this beauty of a bottle.