Stone Castle Vineyards Merlot 2018 *Updated review

Ruby hue with slight bricking on the rim.  Aromas of summer strawberry, sweet spring flowers, beautiful candided, cherries and a brief hint of mint right on opening.

*Palate--Tart first impression, with subdued fruit all around, one dimensional, flat mid palate.

Well, this happens and it is disappointing when it does.  The bouquet of this wine is quite enticing but unfortunately, sometimes a wine seems to give everything it had to the bouquet and leaves the palate high and dry. It is possible that it will open up and improve with breathing but I am not optimistic.

This wine is from Kosovo which is why I bought it.  You just don't see many wines from this part of the world. It has been aged for a year in French oak but it didn't help this wine at this point. With the slight bricking at this relatively young age, any contribution from the oak has been lost.  

*I will update this when has had time to breath.

        After giving it a day, even before we were done with dinner the previous night the wine was better as a "food" wine.  Tasting it about 20 hours later, this wine reminds me of a Tuscan Sangiovese.

The wine is still rather acidic but it works with the right pairing. I just took a taste with a piece of aged Gouda and it works really well.  So for a country that isn't known for its export wine industry, for the price of around $8 I would recommend giving it a try. It is at least a different wine experience.  Raise a glass!