Alexander is a writer and a wine drinker; he is using the former occupation to increase his appreciation of the latter.
Read more about Alexander Velky and see other articles by this author.
Like their Sauvignon Blanc, Oyster Bay‘s Merlot is a staple on the top shelf of supermarkets up and down the country.
It’s a couple of pounds more expensive than your average supermarket red and it’s a respected brand (self-proclaimed “leading winemaker” in NZ) from a respected wine-producing region – Hawke’s Bay is said to be the “Bordeaux of New Zealand” – so that must mean it’s an impressive specimen, right?
Well, as with their Sauv Blanc, I wasn’t bowled over by it at first. But unlike the former, this grew on me: I drank it rather more gradually than I normally would, over a THREE day period, and found it more and more pleasant as I got used to it.
I’m not, of course, suggesting you open your bottles three days prior to consumption: just be patient and considered when forming your opinion. (Like I’m usually not.)
It’s full enough that it could hold its own against darker meats, but I see it as something better suited to drinking on its own, or perhaps accompanying a pudding that’s not too overpowering: maybe even some chocolate, (as long as its not 70-plus percent cocoa).
As far as Merlots go, it’s not a hugely surprising affair – soft tannins and jammy fruitiness. That said, most of the blurbs online seem to boast of its overt ripeness: berries both ‘straw’ an ‘rasp’, and apples, too. I actually felt it reminded me more of sucking on boiled sweets in the back of the car on the way to Butlins. (I always favoured the red and purple ones if I could get my hands on them.)
The finish was slightly tingly and more interesting, perhaps, than the in-the-mouth taste.
Either way, it’s a pleasant wine: not what I’d call exciting, but a reliable one, and a good all-rounder to serve to assemblies of mixed taste.
I wonder if our own waterside land – (sort of) pictured behind the bottle there - could produce grapes to this standard? This is what I contemplated while sipping my Hawke’s Bay, Oyster Bay Merlot from a balcony overlooking Holes Bay. I could call it something else with ‘bay’ in the title. Obviously I’d have to buy up demolish a lot of housing, but that’s never stopped me before…
This wine is available from Majestic for £8.74.
Photograph by Victoria Keeble.
