The Wise One

Very interesting wine over the last two evenings, a 2007 Michel Schlumberger "Le Sage" Merlot from Sonoma's Dry Creek Valley.  "Le Sage" translates as the wise one, and thus the title of this post.

Last evening was a small pan seared fillet mignon  and I opened 'the wise one' and poured a glass.  There was a strong smell of ripe fruit sitting on top of some damp earth and it was anything but subtle.  The taste was full of deep and very ripe fruit, blueberries and cherries.  The acid was appropriate and there was a healthy dose of tannin.  There was also a slight alcoholic burn on the finish (14.5%).  Except for the heat from the alcohol this was a wine whose individuals parts I liked, but taken as a whole it was disappointing.  The wine was not together, it just seemed a collection of parts.  We killed two glasses, placed a vacuum cork in it and put it back in the cellar.

Tonight was mostly snacks and since two of them were mushroom based we decided to finish off the merlot.  The vacuum cork came out and so did a wonderful fragrance of earth and blueberries.  Unlike the previous day this aroma enveloped and caressed the nose instead of virtually assaulting it.  The taste was wonderfully smooth and had a sense of elegance to it.  The tannins had blended in and were softer.  In short, the rough edges were gone and the various parts of this wine now came together into a very nice package.

"The wise one" may have missed on it's first shot, but someone was there to slam home the rebound off the goalie.  Nice wine. Sadly it was my only bottle, but in future vintages I will definitely decant this wine before drinking it.