Robert Keenan, Merlot, Napa Valley

Decided to pop this one because thought it might be getting past its prime but it could have sat longer! Still drinking great: a balance of rich dark & red fruits, suprisingly tannic still for a Merlot (which means not all that tannic, but enough to make it interesting). The bitter off-notes I noted in my last bottle many years ago are no longer noticable. Just about as perfect as a Napa Merlot can get.

2008 vintage

Anniversary dinner (Fiora’s, Geneva) : Double decanted off its sediment about three hours before dinner. Deep youthful color. Aromas of chocolate, currant, black cherry and licorice. Chalky tannins are not yet fully integrated, supporting flavors of black cherry and plummy dark merlot fruit. I should have given this a couple of hours in the decanter rather than the quick double. Not yet at peak…hold to 2024+. 92+ pts.

2008 vintage

This was obviously well made, but not thrilling, as some of the other Keenan wines are.

2012 vintage

Needed a good hour of decant for the tannins to mellow. This is a mountain beast merlot! Spice, dried fruit, leather. Firm tannins, spice on finish. Went well with chicken legs. Ageing this makes me think this is better younger with a decant - the tannins stay, the fruit goes with age.

2012 vintage

Red fruit and some bramble and earth on the nose. Surprisingly youthful red fruit on the palate. Really nice wine.

2002 vintage

Muted red fruit and high tannins. Wine is well made but not very enjoyable.

2012 vintage

Totally agree with the earlier reviewers. This wine is at its prime and an impressive effort. Wonderful.

2008 vintage

Plum, cassis, black cherry, cigar box, spice. Medium-full body. Medium acidity. Medium-light tannins. Medium-plus finish. Went well with braised short ribs. This still has several years before it starts going downhill.

2012 vintage

Blackberry, plum, black cherry, cigar box, spice, dark chocolate. Medium-full body. Medium acidity & tannins. Medium-long finish. Went well with pasta and meat sauce. In its drinking window and will drink well for several more years.

2012 vintage

Rated this an 89 about a year and a half ago and my rating is unchanged today. Not my choice to open and sorta relied on the person who chose it to finish it off. Mushroom funk like the last time. Muted fruit. Some earthy characteristics but never came to life. Disjointed. Uninspiring. Disappointing as I quite like Keenan wines on a whole.

2012 vintage

Very nice!!

2012 vintage

Finally open and accessible after a few years of slumber. Probably at peak. Rich milk chocolate, tangy cherries, and pipe tobacco. Lots of sediment in the bottle. Opened up after 30-min of air without decanting. Drink now - 2020. Technical score: 92. Enjoyment score: 92.

2008 vintage

Great merlot with incredible depth and a smooth, long finish.

2012 vintage

This is an amazing wine. Enjoyed with friends. It is ready to drink. Some dark brown on edges of wine. Literally smelled of intense currants. That scent transitioned into the taste of the wine. It is a rich, deep, and smooth wine. Dark fruit and mild tannins abound. Every one loved this wine. Many thought they were drinking an aged Cabernet. I would drink this one in the next year or so.

2008 vintage

Consistent with notes a few months ago. Drink now. Technical score: 90. Enjoyment score: 91.

2008 vintage

Wine Tasting Group - No Theme - Jan. 28, 2018 (Classic Wine Storage, Dallas, TX) : Ripe candied black fruit, herbs and cassis aromas. Palate shows more candied fruit, some herbs and ok acids. But this was really disjointed with a whole lot of oak coming through. Consensus worst bottle of the night. Maybe it would be better on day 2 but didn't improve a whole lot over the several hours we had this open.

2012 vintage

Improved from last April, probably at peak. Lush, voluptuous black fruit and chocolate, balanced palate, refined tannins, but seems to be losing its punch. Drink now. Technical score: 90. Enjoyment score: 91.

2008 vintage

Some sediment in the bottle. Cassis, blackberry, black cherry, chocolate, espresso, spice. Medium-full body. Medium-plus acidity & finish. Medium tannins. Still no rush to drink these.

2012 vintage

4th Saturday Group brown bagger (Our house) : Double blind. Notes of dark fruit, herbs and vanilla. Good fruit on the palate with softened tannins and a medium+ finish.

2002 vintage

Nice effort. Very friendly and satisfying wine. For the price, I was hoping for more.

2012 vintage

This opened up with some aromas but overall quite tannic and not so appealing for a Merlot. Gradually this opened up so it was quite good at 1 hr with food but even better after dinner. Quite plush and flavorful. Dark red fruit, plum, spice. Firm dusty tannins, rich.

2012 vintage

Lush cherries, blackberries, milk chocolate, and minty tobacco. Still has good stuffing and thick tannins. Pretty good length. Better with food. Technical score: 91. Enjoyment score: 90.

2008 vintage

Did not disappoint. Smooth brick. Chocolate. Clean finish.

2012 vintage

This merlot certainly needed some time to come around. IMO was still quite restricted at one hour and had kind of a funky nose. This defined "funk" was a little more like a corked wine, but it resolved after probably 30-45 minutes. The wine itself had a nice "merlot-y" kind of earth, spice, mushroom nose. A little bit velvety, but also had a nice bramble. The palate was more licorice, some black fruits and a hint of truffle. Almost a …

2012 vintage

This is a medium black red and medium clarity Merlot, with a hint a brown on the edges. The nose is high octane and bright with black cherry, anis and good fruit. It is a dark, dry powerhouse with blackberry, tar and tobacco flavors. This nice soft wine aged great and still has a few year left, but ir it prime time for drinking now.

2008 vintage

Tasting really well right now.

2012 vintage

The wine looks garnet colored. The legs are fast. There is no sediment in the bottle. It smells like black currant (cassis). It tastes like alcohol/hot and black currant (cassis). The body is medium/full. The wine has angular texture. The wine finishes medium. The wine has high acidity.

2012 vintage

Family Winemakers Tasting San Francisco, nose of black cherry, dusty earth, and blackberry, same on the palate, big body, medium amount of soft tannins, subdued fruit, tasty, needs 4 years to peak, long finish.

2012 vintage

A solid easy drinker. Benefits from 24 hours of air.

2012 vintage

Very enjoyable Merlot! Not really complex but an easy drinking and good tasting wine.

2012 vintage

Lots of structure and defined. Chiseled. Defined. Youthful and needs time.

2012 vintage

Aged very nicely. Excellent.

2008 vintage

Decanted. Plum, cherry, tobacco. Medium-Full Body, acidity, and finish. No rush to drink these.

2012 vintage

Still very tannic - and slightly out of balance. 2 left so i'll wait at least a couple years to go back in.

2012 vintage

A cab lovers Merlot. Big tannins for a merlot. Should decant for several hours and didn't. Will be better in a few more years.

2012 vintage

Excellent. Great Tannin and fruit. Could use a couple more years of age.

2012 vintage

nicely balanced broad stroke of dark ripe fruits nose and palate resting on a very subtle tannin bed.....not complex in the sense of layering, nevertheless quite enjoyable

2008 vintage

Nice approachable easy drinking red, even in its youth. Dark garnet colored, medium bodied, floral aromas, ripe black raspberry and black cherry fruits, hints of bell pepper, oak and smoke with a firm cab like tannin finish. Tasted at Trattoria Fiamma MGM Las Vegas. http://unwindwine.blogspot.com/2016/03/wine-and-dine-at-trattoria-fiamma-mgm.html

2012 vintage

Consistent with previous notes back in November 2014, only much more developed and refined on the palate and finish. Nice core of dark plums and blackberries layered by red hard candy and herbs. Great structure with hard acidic frame and firm tannins, so this should last another 5+ years. Drink through 2020+

2008 vintage

Deep, opaque violet color with medium legs. Nose of dark fruit, vanilla,oak, cocoa and a hint of cayenne pepper. Taste of ripe black plum with hints of anise and cloves. Great classic Napa merlot. Paired decently well with spiced pork loin, but better suited for lamb/beef.

2008 vintage

Amazing how taste can change. The more my cellar grows the more refined the palet. I was sad to lose a memory of enjoyment but in all fairness a dirty nose and a dusty taste.

2008 vintage

Pretty ordinary. Nothing distinctive.

2008 vintage

Excellent

2008 vintage

Plum flavors, a stemy bitterness early on, which mellowed out with some air. Round and supple.

2008 vintage

This wine has improved significantly since my first bottle in 2013. Rich and dense dark fruit, full-bodied cab drinker's Merlot with a lengthy and very well balanced finish. I recommend decanting for a couple of hours for an optimum experience.

2008 vintage

Good merlot. Bottle wasn't off or astringent in any way. Gave it about 30 minutes of air before pouring out of the bottle. Nice dense anise and dirty merlot funk nose with mud and sticks! This wine makes you concentrate a bit. On the entry the wine is very luscious -- rather full bodied and obtuse. A little eucalyptus -- comes in a bit hot -- but settles down to a nice dark black dirty fruit core with some appendages …

2008 vintage

This bottle was slightly (and elusively) off somehow. Drank over two days. Not nearly as compelling as my experience with it back in November. Tasted woody, hot, and was angular.

2008 vintage

Really showed well, and I was a little concerned about some storage issues. In a happy middle aged place right now, with wonderful fruit showing, but no baby fat. This was a magnum.

2002 vintage

This is entering a nice peak window now; much improved since last Spring. Great floral nose with cherry blossoms, red hard candy, cherry menthol, and a lingering leather note. The core of this wine is really opening up into a nice medium-to-full-bodied wine, bringing blueberries, blackberries, raspberries, and scattered notes of soy sauce, herbs, baking spices, and tobacco. The finish still packs a punch which leads me to believe this will last a while. Overall, the dark fruit and savory …

2008 vintage

When in Rome... Choose French or German. That is, when in California. What an over alcohol, flat merlot. The slight headache that accompanies the ripe fruit is de riguer. Little of interest. Over priced.

2008 vintage

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Robert Keenan, Merlot, Napa Valley

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