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The History of Merlot

The History of Merlot wine can be traced back all the way back to the first century in France. And throughout the history of Merlot Wine, it has picked up many additional names. Some of the more common names for Merlot wine from around the world include: Petit Merle, Bigney and Vitraille.

Merlot wine is made from the Merlot Grape which is an early ripening grape that is harvested well before winter sets in. Throughout the history of Merlot wine, there has been a love-hate relationship with the Merlot grape. On the one hand, Merlot grapes make a truly excellent red wine but they can also be very vulnerable to early spring frosts. Merlot grapes are large and thin skinned which makes them a prime target for birds. In fact, the history of Merlot wine is dotted with stories of crops being destroyed by flocks of hungry birds. Unlike other types of red wine grapes, Merlot grapes simply can not tolerate any kind of bird damage. Merlot grapes do have some redeeming qualities though besides the fact that they make excellent wines. For instance, Merlot grapes have always been able to thrive in colder climates and soils that are too poor and too cold for Cabernet Sauvignon grapes to grow.

Throughout the history of Merlot the most famous home for this wine is the Bordeaux region of France. Approximately forty percent of the wine grapes grown in the Medoc region (which is actually world-famous for Cabernet) are Merlot grapes. Much like Sauvignon Blanc Grapes, Merlot wines are also made with great success in the northeast of Italy.

The history of Merlot wine also shows us that Merlot grapes have proven to be very versatile. Not only do they make excellent wines all by themselves but they are often blended with many other types of grapes to made softer varieties of red wine. The most popular wine to blend Merlot with is Cabernet Sauvignon.

The long history of Merlot wines has given wineries from around the world the chance to perfect the process of making this wine. But, perfection has a price. The world's most famous producer of French Merlot wines is Chateau Petrus and the 1990 Chateau Petrus Merlot wine costs a staggering $1,700 a bottle. Don't worry though, at no point in the history of Merlot wine has demand for it been higher which means that there are a lot of great Merlot wines on market at competitive prices. (See Merlot Wine Recommendations, White Merlot and Napa Merlot.)

The history of Merlot wine has seen many variations of this delicious wine. Plum, cherry and blackcurrant are some of the more common flavors. Lightly oaked Merlot wines produce touches of vanilla and coconut while heavily oaked varieties produce smoke, tar and oak flavours. You can even find spices such as mint, caramel, cloves and bay leaves and if the bottle has been properly aged you may find earthy aromas of mushrooms, coffee, leather and cigars.

Merlot wine is excellent with pasta, meats and even chocolate. It has proven itself as an excellent wine for all wine drinkers and is one of the few red wines which white wine drinkers can really appreciate.