- I'm Patrick Cappiello, Wine Director of Rebelle
restaurant in New York City, and recipient of Wine
Spectator's Grand Award. And today, I am gonna
drink some (bleep) Merlot. (upbeat music) So Merlot when it's at its best, is a wine that's not
too dry, not too fruity. Usually there's notes of like plum, there's a little bit of
earthiness to the wine, but it's not super overpowering. It's really kind of a round, smooth, supple kind of wine. And it tends to appeal to a large variety of people, and work with several
different kinds of food. Today we're gonna taste several Merlots, that you can find for under $15 dollars. Alright, this wine has kind of a, it smells kind of like a rubber tire which is never a good thing. There's like some fruit layered in there. But definitely fruit and rubber, (laughs) are the two things,
I'm smelling the most. Like you put a condom on a plum. It's a little sour, like sour cherries. And it really kinda
fades away very quickly. There's really not much
tannin to the wine. It's mainly all about the acid. So it's not something you would wanna have with like a steak. I'm gonna give that a D minus. Fuck! Francis you and I, we just can't get along I don't understand. Damn it. This is like the Godfather
III of your red wine line up. Wish he never made it. Yep, Diamond Collection. I'm beginning to fear
for my life in New York. (laughs) Alright. Smells pretty good. This smells like Merlot, for sure. It's like very fruity,
but it smells simple. It doesn't smell like it's
wine that's being forced, I feel like this is a
wine that's being allowed to just be what it is,
which is a good thing. Juicy, it's round, it's fruit forward. There's like a hint of sweetness on there, but in a nice way, that kinda balances out the acid in the wine. It doesn't have a ton of tannin, which for Merlot is fine. For under 15 bucks, I definitely
wouldn't be disappointed. Give that one an A minus. Oh wow, awesome! Charles Smith, the
coolest dude making wine in Washington, for sure. Super, super simple. Affordable. And also like a good thing for Washington. Very cool! This one doesn't smell so great. There's some wood
involvement in this wine. Not to its benefit, but there's a little wood on there. So it smells kinda like vanilla. There's a little bit of a
fruity characteristic to it, but more the wood driving
the way it smells. Pretty good length, and kind of a nice round finish. Feels a little warm, I think probably the alcohol level on this is a little bit higher than some of the other wines we've tasted. But all in all, I think the
wine's like well crafted. I'd give this one a C plus. Rodney not so Strong, This is a Sonoma County
Merlot from Rodney Strong. This wine is definitely
available everywhere. Aging in small oak barrels, imparts a toasty vanilla character that lingers through the silky finish. That's actually a very
accurate tasting note. But it falls a little short and tastes a little bitter. For under 15 bucks, there's worse wines. This is more Merlot than I've consumed in a long time. It smells kinda like,
a little bit like tar. It's a little sour, it's
actually a lot sour. There's like a lack of fruit in the smell, and in the taste of this wine. Which I think kinda goes against the idea of what Merlot should be. After you taste it, it hurts. For sure the worst one yet. That's an F. For sure an F. Ah, (laughs) perfect! Yep, Castle Rock. It's at my parent's house often. Wow, well maybe Washington state doesn't make all the best wines. So highs and lows from Washington today. This is definitely a low. That's too bad. Alright, this wine smells fruity for sure, but there's something else there, like um, like a little bit of spiciness. It doesn't smell awful. (glass clinks) Tastes kinda like raspberry juice, but it's a little sour. It has kind of like a
not so appealing finish. It's not the worst wine of the day, but it's close. Just okay. Like I think that's a straight C. Oh! Bogle. There's a joke in there some place. Look at this bottle, I
think they spent more on the bottle than they did on the wine. This is like a giant bottle. It's heavy too. They probably should've used
a less expensive bottle, and put a little more effort
in the wine that's in it. That's about what I'd
expect though, I guess. So this wine smells, what I would expect from a Merlot. It's not too overpowering,
it's not too aromatic. There's definitely like
late aromas of red fruits. There's a little plum in there for sure. Doesn't seem too out of the box, it seems pretty simple
and pretty approachable, which is really ideal for Merlot. Flavor's good, it has pretty long finish. There's some tan in there, so you feel kinda that grip on the wine, but also get acidity so it's kinda juicy. And really wow, it's like taste the
label to the taste wine, which usually means that the wine is of a higher level of quality. Yeah, very good. I think um, I'm gonna give this a B plus. For under 15 bucks I'd be pretty psyched to drink this wine. Oh, alright! Casa Lapostolle, Chile's finest. Wow, very cool! Chile has always tried
to position themselves as being an area that produces great wine, at that price point. And I think that this wine proves that they're able to deliver that. Super satisfied, that's very impressive. Yeah. So, I think we learned today that Merlot, can be a great wine, and a great wine for under $15 dollars. And it is kind of like the goal of Merlot, to be an affordable, kind
of all purpose red wine. The winning wine today
is from Washington state, from Charles Smith. I think it's a wine
that's very approachable at its price, as well
as its favor profile. I think it proves that Merlot, really is one of the last great values for red wines in grocery stores. And it's a wine that I would
definitely drink myself. I'm gonna have some more right now. From www.Playboy.com
I'm Patrick Cappiello. (upbeat rock music)
