You know something?  I was about to reference this wine in a previous post and when I did a quick search on my OWN site for “merlot” I realized that  MoreThanMerlot.com has never reviewed a 100% merlot wine.  NEVER.  How is this even possible?  Especially when I can think of half a dozen fabulous merlots right off the top of my head that I would recommend?  Well, I’ll tell you this :  The next 6 bottles of wine I purchase will be 100% down-right fantastic merlots.  I understand there is a wedding diet and a wedding budget to worry about, but this is research here!  So, since I’m bound to a desk for another half hour or so and physically/morally not able to actually TRY a new merlot at this moment in time, I am going to first share with you an old merlot stand-by of mine:  Blackstone Merlot.  Blackstone is great, it’s easy to find, a good price range to drink at home or bring to a friend’s house for a casual dinner party, and it is a generally consistent and pleasing wine.  I like Blackstone Merlot because it is fruity and smooth – not jammy like merlot can sometimes get.  It is a strong, true to varietal wine with great hints of cherry and soft spice.  Now, I must admit, while visiting the Blackstone site to find a picture of the bottle I discovered that this example is in fact NOT a 100% varietal wine but consists of 80% Merlot, 10% Syrah, 3% Cab Sauv and 1% Zin (I realize the percentages are a tad off but I took this directly from their site…).  That being said, it’s probably why I like this Merlot so much, I just love blended wines!  Blends can remove the negatives from one varietal by adding the positives of another!  Hello, Bordeaux for example?  Why do we think it is the most famous wine region in all the world?  But I digress…  SO, world, I give you the first official review of a (kinda-sorta) true Merlot wine on this site.  But I also give you so much more, the promise of more to come!  As I get my shopping list together, let me know if there are any 100% Merlots that you’ve had your eye on or that you think I must try!  I hope Monique has her game face on today, I am coming to play…

(photo credit: blackstonewinery.com)