After nine days of winery tours in Napa, Sonoma, and Anderson Valley, this is the first of the wines I shipped home to get uncorked. Hanna Winery is located in the Alexander Valley close to Silver Oak and Alexander Valley Vineyards. Our tasting at Hanna was well done by a friendly staffer who offered us library selections as well as current releases.
Most of you know that I'm not usually a Merlot lover, but there are some exceptions. Some Merlot (think Petrus, Cheval Blanc) has structure and long cellar ability. Some Merlot comes off flabby, gritty, and too jammy and fruity. I'm not quite at the "Miles Raymond" feel for Merlot, but I do poo poo it often.
Hanna's Bismark Merlot approaches this often overdone varietal with the structure I like in a long-term wine. As a bonus, we were able to sample the 1994, 1995, 2000, and current release from the same vineyard. There was a bit of life left in the 94, more still in 95, but the 2000 was the winner. The tannin subsided leaving smooth blackberries and dust on the nose. No harsh tannin remained on the palette and no flab or jam remained. What remained was one of the best Merlot-based wines I've tried. My only regret was not buying more of these.
The library wines are out of Hanna's cellar and ready for you to buy at a big discount! Instead of hiking up the price, they've lowered the price of the library selections. I'm going to get a few more of these before they're gone. They're drinking very well right now.
http://www.hannawinery.com/
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