Sometimes I find it impossible to believe how time flies. One of the wonderful talents in wine, Merry Edwards has now celebrated her 20th anniversary at her winery. This summer I had the chance to sit down with her and talk about her illustrious career. It seemed like she couldn’t believe how quickly her success had progressed as well. Merry Edwards began her career at Mount Eden Vineyards in the Santa Cruz Mountains in 1974. She went on to become the founding winemaker at Matanzas Creek in 1977 and remained there until 1984. For the next decade, Merry consulted for numerous wineries, large and small, in Oregon and many diverse appellations of California. In 1997, family and friends joined Merry to found Merry Edwards Winery, with a focus on producing Pinot Noirs from Russian River Valley and Sonoma Coast.
Merry is just a delightful person to chat with. Despite suffering from a cold and cough she still took time to speak with me. I have long admired her wines and I feel that she consistently produces the best Sauvignon Blanc in North America. She continues to produce one of the top lineups in Sonoma as her new set of releases were simply stunning. Look to her new 2017 Merry Edwards Sauvignon Blanc (WWB, 94) which is the best Sauvignon Blanc in North America that I have tried since her stunning 2016 bottling. This wine shows intense range and weight on the mid-palate. A stunning value, it is a wine to purchase by the case. Merry Edwards has developed a reputation for top notch Pinot Noir and her 2016 Merry Edwards ‘Flax Vineyard’ Pinot Noir (WWB, 95) is absolutely singing right now with serious range, earthy terroir and a marvelous sense of place. This wine is one for the cellar. Learn more about these special Sonoma wines at http://www.merryedwards.com/ Here are the beautiful wines by Merry Edwards Winery.
2017 Merry Edwards Sauvignon Blanc- The 2017 Merry Edwards Sauvignon Blanc is a head-turning wine by one of Sonoma’s great talents Merry Edwards. The nose takes on really good range with ripe pear, kumquat and nutmeg accents with gooseberry. The texture is light and beautifully layered with vanilla cream, bright pear and pineapple flavors, giving this an exotic edge. Rich and layered, this gorgeous effort will cellar well over the next five to eight years. Drink 2018-2024- 94
2016 Merry Edwards ‘Vintage 20 Russian River Valley’ Pinot Noir- The 2016 Merry Edwards ‘Russian River Valley’ Pinot Noir marks the 20th vintage that this wine has been made. This barrel selection wine was sourced from the Coopersmith, Georganne, Meredith Estate and Warrens’ Hill Vineyards. The nose shows copious red fruits with cola, citrus rind and tar accents. The palate shows some serious weight, as the wine unveils a silky texture that wonderfully coats the mid-palate. Cigar ash, black tea, wild blackberry cobbler and cran-pomegranate favors all collide and show some serious range. A long-ager, enjoy this beautiful bottling over the next fifteen plus years. Drink 2018-2033- 95
2016 Merry Edwards ‘Sonoma Coast’ Pinot Noir- The 2016 ‘Sonoma Coast’ Pinot Noir by Merry Edwards is a sensational new wine by superstar winemaker, Merry Edwards. The wine is a blend of eight individual lots of Pinot Noir in the Sonoma Coast AVA. This starts off with aromas of saline drenched red cherry, cigar box and suggestions of cran-orange. The palate shows good freshness and tension with copious red fruits with blood orange rind and dusty terroir flavors. A stunning wine, this will age well for the next ten plus years. Drink 2018-2030- 93
2016 Merry Edwards ‘Klopp Ranch’ Pinot Noir- The ‘Klopp Ranch Vineyard’ is 26 acre vineyard planted to Pinot Noir clones Pommard, Pommard 5, Joseph Swan and Dijon clones 115, 667 and 777. The wine shows a wonderful dark fruit profile with dark raspberry, and loganberry preserves that connect with forest floor and white truffle crudo. The palate shows wonderful freshness and intensity, showing a nice saline streak. Black tea, wild blackberry jam, cigar ash and wet stone flavors all marvelously connect in the glass. This stunning wine is best enjoyed over the next fifteen plus years but it is sensational right now. Give this at least an hour decant if enjoying in its youth. Drink 2019-2035- 94
2016 Merry Edwards ‘Flax Vineyard’ Pinot Noir- Located on Westside Road in the Russian River Valley AVA, the ‘Flax Vineyard’ is planted to Pinot Noir Dijon clone 4. The wine opens with intense aromatics of red currant jelly, black tea, blackberry cobbler and damp terroir. The aromatic range is entirely enticing and awakens the senses. Bright and intense, showing a wonderful minerality and sense of place, the wine unveils wonderful red and dark fruit flavors with citrus rind and earthy terroir accents. A stunning wine, enjoy this fantastic bottling over the next fifteen to twenty years. Drink 2018-2033- 95
2016 Merry Edwards ‘Meredith Estate’ Pinot Noir=- Intense and brooding in the glass, the 2016 Merry Edwards ‘Meredith Estate’ Pinot Noir is a dazzling new bottling. The nose takes on some serious range from umami to blood orange rind to red cherry candy to cran-pomegranate. Ripe and rich, showing nice mid-palate weight and a strong salinity, the wine shows off downright sexy red fruit flavors with cola and orange rind also shining brightly. Outstanding now, this wine needs a one to two hour decant if enjoying in its youth. Drink 2018-2033- 94