Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2017 & 2018 Merlot
Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2018 Merlot
Tasted 8 February 2021
Ahhh Moss Wood, you know how to make a palate swoon!
Thank you so much for this sample. We enjoyed it with a simple beef ragu. Which is also a baby friendly recipe for my fellow wine loving parents out there.
The Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2018 Merlot from Western Australia’s Margaret River region currently retails for $70 and you can buy it online through the Moss Wood website.
There’s a tiny amount (5%) of Cabernet Franc mixed in with the Merlot in this wine. And you will be rewarded if you can pop it in the cellar for a decade. Or even more if you’re super patient.
It’s a deep yet vibrant cherry red colour in the glass. The nose is full of red and black fruits, laced with vanilla bean, baking spice and all things nice. It’s super alluring on the nose, simply put. In the mouth it’s full of delectable, rich balanced flavour. I especially love the juiciness and the lovely touch of toasty oak and dark chocolate on the finish.
This wine was sent to me as a sample, I was under no obligation to post about it.
All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!
Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2017 Merlot
Tasted 29 October 2019
Moss Wood – it’s a name associated with elegance and luxury in the wine world. Hailing from Wilyabrup in WA, it is one of the important founding estates of the Margaret River wine region.
I was recently sent a sample of the new Moss Wood Ribbon Vale 2017 releases, which included this Merlot (thank you!). Ribbon Vale is the name of one of their vineyards (they have 3). It was first planted in 1977 and comprises of 6.36 hectares. It’s unirrigated and is made up of gravelly loams over clay sub-soils.
2017 was a great vintage for the Margaret River and especially Moss Wood. The grapes were handpicked, malolactic fermentation took place and the wine spent time in French oak. 93% of the wine is made up of Merlot grapes and the other 7% Cabernet Franc.
We popped this one in the decanter prior to drinking. It’s tasting great now but it’ll definitely evolve with time in the cellar, in fact on the Moss Wood website they say full maturity will be reached after 20 years!
Here are our notes:
Deep juicy cherry red with a lovely brightness to it. The nose is simply gorgeous, it wafts out of the glass in an elegantly beautiful way with dark fruits, especially blueberries, intertwined with, oak and rose perfume – it has an amazing depth to it. While in the mouth it’s incredibly juicy, think blackberries with a hint of toasted sugarcane, subtle smoky tannins, delicate fruit and good oak structure & nice acidity in the finish.
This beauty retails for $77 which you can buy via mosswood.com.au
This wine was given to me as a sample, I was under no obligation to post about it.
All opinions are based on my own taste buds. Wine is subjective & always evolving, so make sure you drink what you enjoy!