2019 Rutherford Hill Merlot

2019 Rutherford Hill Merlot

2019 Rutherford Hill Merlot Bright Ruby red in colour, good dark fruits blackberry, black plum and vanilla nose. Quite bold on the palate with lush plum and dark chocolate, cherry. Some oaky with good tannin and a good finish surrounds this 2019 wine.

Rutherford Hill

Nestled high on a hill, Rutherford Hill Winery commands a spectacular view overlooking the Rutherford bench of Napa Valley. It is from a handful of the most select Napa vineyards that Rutherford Hill continues its tradition of crafting legendary wines. In 1972, while the rest of the world was just beginning to take notice of Napa Valley, the founders of Rutherford Hill recognized a unique opportunity; they believed that the climate and soil of the valley, similar to Pomerol, were well suited to Merlot and were among the first to pioneer what has become Napa’s premier varietal.

In 1996, the Terlato family purchased the winery and embraced their legendary commitment to quality over quantity. Their pursuit of excellence began with a comprehensive review of all aspects of the facility that resulted in significant enhancements to our portfolio of wines of great complexity and character.

Bill and John Terlato continue their father, Anthony Terlato’s legacy by working closely with Rutherford Hill winemaker, Marisa Taylor, to tackle the challenges of consistently improving the wine, vintage after vintage. The philosophy that the Terlato’s apply to all their ventures was evident at Rutherford Hill from the beginning.

Another way of putting quality first was to create an environment in which reserve wines could be given the time, care and consideration they needed within the Rutherford Hill portfolio.

A new state-of-the art facility for the production of reserve wines ─ a “winery within a winery” ─ began taking shape in spring of 2000 and was functional in time for that year’s harvest. Costing more than $7 million, the 5,100-square foot winery addition has 24 fermentation tanks ranging from 1,500 to 6,000 gallons. It is self-contained, complete with its own press, refrigeration capabilities (tanks are jacketed for both warming and cooling glycol) and harvest crew.