Hi wine friends, and Happy Wine Wednesday! October is Virginia Wine Month, so I’m sharing a Virginia wine that was actually part of a larger Virginia Wine Twitter Tasting—the 2015 Breaux Vineyards Meritage. You can watch my YouTube video to get all my thoughts, as well as background on the wine, or you can keep reading!
Also, in full disclosure, the Twitter tasting was organized by Frank from Drink What YOU Like, it was sponsored by Visit Loudon, and all of the wines, including the Breaux Meritage, were sent as samples.
As the name suggests, the 2015 Breaux Vineyards Meritage has an SRP of $42 and is a red wine blend—50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Petit Verdot, 23% Cabernet Franc, and 2% Malbec. It’s a small production wine, with only 376 cases produced. The wine was a nice dark, inky ruby color. On the nose, there were a lot of blackberries and tobacco with some green tea and baking spice notes. There was also a little bit of earthiness, the type of smell that reminded me of walking in a forest right after a little bit of rain. It was an earthy, dirt smell, but in a very nice way. In the mouth, there were juicy, ripe blackberries practically hitting me in the face, followed by green tea and tobacco and more subtle notes of nutmeg and cinnamon. The wine had a medium-to-full body with tannins that just clung to my mouth.
2015 Breaux Vineyards Meritage
Overall, the 2015 Breaux Vineyards Meritage is a beautiful wine, although it definitely needs to breathe a little bit before you drink it, which is something I learned during the Twitter tasting because I didn’t. That said, because it does so nicely with some air, it was still beautiful when I enjoyed a glass the next day.
If you’re ready to start drinking a little more red wine and have been thinking about pulling out some of your heavier clothes, but maybe you’re not ready to dive right in and drink that big juicy California cab yet, this is exactly what I think you should be going for. It’s the perfect wine for transitioning into fall. It has a little bit of that smokiness and a little bit of that structure that is perfect for the weather getting chilly. It feels to me like a wine that I want with fall leaves, some football, and chili.
Also, as you’re starting to thinking about the holidays, it’s a wine that would be perfect for Thanksgiving. It’s a little more on the expensive side, so it’s not one of those wines I’m going to open up every day, but for a special occasion like Thanksgiving where I’m family is coming over and I want to share a bottle or two of something special, this would be a perfect option. It has the characteristics of a crowd-pleasing wine and it’s festive.
Questions of the Day:
- I know Breaux Vineyards wine has started making its way outside of Virginia, so have you had a chance to taste any? If so, which ones and what did you think?
