Sauska Merlot Kopár
Villány 2018
Broad and concentrated blue and black plum aromas with graphite and sage. Juicy, crisp yet rich palate with ripe plum, cigar box and shitake flavors. Upfront and ripe tannins with a savory, graphite finish.
The Year
Rich, full bodied and intense wines. The 2018 vintage will be remembered as the one with the earliest harvest day ever (August 11th for Rosé). It is considered the warmest year of the past decade, thankfully without any extreme heat peaks. It was constantly warm (and dry) from late spring until early autumn. Mid-September brought some very much-needed rain that slowed down the ripening and allowed the grapes to get some refreshment. The Cabernets and Kékfrankos specially shined in this vintage.
| Varietal composition: | merlot |
| Recommended drinking temperature: | 17-18 ℃ |
| Alcohol content: | 14,5 % |
| Bottle size: | 0,75 l |
Unit price
Vineyards
Kopár
This single-vineyard wine comes from the Kopár plot, located in the warmer Villány area. Kopár, is believed to be the warmest vineyard in the whole country. It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the wines produced from this vineyard are full, rich, and warming. Our red-wine harvest usually starts with this vineyard. Kopár has become an iconic name for the whole region and, also, for the country. It is arguably the best well-known single vineyard name of Hungary.
Winemaking
After a 3-tier thorough selection of hand-picked clusters, the grapes were de-stemmed and after a couple of hours of pre-fermentative cold soak, the fermentation started. Fermented happened in stainless steel tanks.
After 30 days of skin-contact, the wine was gently pressed.
Aged for 15 months in 225-liter French barrels. 70% new oak was used.
The Year
Following the late March, winter weather spring arrived early, bringing high temperatures and early bud-break. As a result of the above-average temperatures in April and May shoot growth was rapid. May was very dry, blooming came early and pushed us into an unusually early harvest, we started with the Rose base wines on August 11th. The warm fall did not favor quality, ripening slowed down. In the second half of September, we finally saw some rain, temperatures went down, and ripening restarted. Late ripening varietals, Kékfrankos, Cabernet Franc, and Cabernet Sauvignon developed nicely in October, we finished the harvest with Cabernet Sauvignon in mid-October. Despite the unpredictable weather and unbalanced rhythm quality turned out to be excellent.
Details
| Type | Red wine |
| Acidity | 6,3 g/l |
| Alcohol content | 14,5 % |
| Varietal composition: | merlot |
| pH | 3,65 |
| Bottle size | 0,75 l |
| Beginning of harvest | 2017-09-14 |
| Bottling date | 2019-09-24 |
| Vinification | in used and new oak barrels |
| Ageing time | 15 Month |
| Vineyards | Kopár |
Tasting
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color | Shiny deep ruby |
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smell | Broad and concentrated blue and black plum aromas with graphite and sage. |
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taste | Upfront and ripe tannins with a savory, graphite finish. |