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October is International Merlot Month!

#MerlotMe all month long.

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I'm starting #MerlotMe month with three stunners from Walla Walla, Washington.

In 2012 the month of October was declared International Merlot Month. This year, more than 100 Merlot producers from all over the world are joining together to celebrate this lovely wine grape variety.

We're using the hashtag #MerlotMe to make it easy to find wine reviews. Since I'm just back from the 2018 Wine Bloggers Conference in Walla Walla, I'm starting my Merlot tastings and reviews with three lovely Walla Walla wines.

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Blind tastings every month at the Clore Center.


Personally, my passion for Merlot was reignited this January. I hosted a Merlot blind tasting at the Walter Clore Wine and Culinary Center, which made me fall in deep like all over again. There's something about Merlot and it's varied styles which pleases and purples.

Merlot Statistics

  • Merlot sales are up! (Nielsen)
  • Merlot is one of the top four most purchased red wines in U.S. restaurants (Winemetrics)
  • California Merlot consumption in the U.S. was 19 million cases in 2017 (The Wine Institute)
  • Merlot is the third most popular California red wine sold in the U.S. (The Wine Institute)
  • Consumers are buying more "luxury" Merlot ($20 +) with sales up 10% (IRI 52 week data 5/20/18)
  • Merlot is Washington states second most popular wine grape variety, after Cabernet Sauvignon 
  • Washington state has 9,071 vineyard acres planted to Merlot (as of 2017)

Follow Along

You are invited to follow along as we taste and share our Merlot wine experiences all month long. You can join in by sharing your positive Merlot experiences too. Use the following social media handles: 

Twitter @MerlotMePlease
Instagram @MerlotMe
Facebook @MerlotMeOfficialPage

I hope you re-discover Merlot all over again, just as I did this year.

Cheers!
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