Montrlot, Merlot 2023 12,5%, 750ml

Name: Montrlot, Merlot 2023 12,5%, 750ml
Brand: Domaine MONT
SKU: NISMONT3
Price: 75.00 EUR
Availability: InStock

Ref : NISMONT3

€75.00

Tax Included

€100.00 / L

For the 2023 Montrelot vintage, our winemaker has contracted two vineyards, Soma Farm and Aki Vineyard, to grow Merlot grapes.

In 2023, due to a significant drop in the Merlot harvest at Soma Farm, Mr. Yamanaka blended it mainly with Merlot from Aki Vineyard. This wine is a blend of Merlot grown by Shingo Soma, a farmer at Soma Farm and owner of the restaurant “Yoiccini” in Nobori, Yoichi City, and Merlot from Aki Vineyard, grown by Motonobu Aki.

After harvesting, the grapes were left to rest in the vat for four weeks, then pressed without punching down. Fermentation is carried out with whole bunches using wild yeasts. Unfiltered, unfined, and without the addition of sulfur, this wine highlights the elegance and sensual nuances that only Merlot grown in a cool climate can offer. We recommend letting it age for a few years before enjoying it.

This cuvée has a ruby color. Nose is open, frank, and fruity, with rich, fruity, and floral aromas of violet, rose, strawberry, and cherry, giving it an almost oriental character.

The palate is supple, round, tannic, silky, and elegant. This free-spirited, beautiful wine will pair well with red mullet, sauce vierge, grilled red meats, mushroom velouté, dried pork belly, eel dishes, grilled yakitori chicken, and soy sauce-based sauces. This wine requires 2 to 3 years of aging for optimal enjoyment.

Facing east, from sunrise onwards, the sun shines through the 1.5-hectare vineyard of Domaine Mont, in a privileged environment where grapes are grown with good ventilation and drainage. Because the temperature rarely exceeds 30 degrees during the day and drops below 20 degrees at night, this gives the vineyard efficient photosynthesis and, as a result, moderate acidity in the wine that tends to linger and a sugar content that tends to increase. The accumulated temperature in Yoichi is similar to that of northern Burgundy and Alsace. Mr. Yamanaka, the owner of the estate, avoids using pesticides as much as possible, especially insecticides, because he respects insects as carriers of wild yeast. As for the winemaking method, he chooses to use wild yeast rather than dry yeast to speed up fermentation. He believes that it is better to let the various microorganisms work slowly to create a delicate and complex aroma. Born and raised in a family of Japanese tea merchants, he truly learned the “umami, bitterness, and delicacy” of Japanese tea, and today he strives to express this flavor in his wines. Today, he strives to express this “Japanese-ness” in his wine.

Data sheet

Capacity: 750 ml
Weight: 0,75 Kg net
Ingredients: grapes
Volume of pure alcohol: 12,5%
Appearance: ruby
Category: light-colored red wine
Recommandation: EXCESSIVE CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOL IS DANGEROUS FOR YOUR HEALTH. DRINK WITH MODERATION. CONSUMPTION OF ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES DURING PREGNANCY, EVEN IN SMALL QUANTITY, CAN HAVE SEVERE CONSEQUENCES FOR THE CHILD’S HEALTH. THE SALE OF ALCOHOL IS FORBIDDEN TO MINORS UNDER AGE 18
Winery: Domaine Mont
Location: 898 Noboricho, Yoichigun Yoichicho, Hokkaido
Quantity produced: approximately 1,100 bottles
Bottle color: dark
Grape variety: Merlot 100%
Grape origin: Yoichicho, Hokkaido (vineyards under contract with Soma Farm / Aki Vineyard)
Yeast type: Wild yeast
Fermentation type: Whole bunches
Fermentation process: 40 days in stainless steel vats
Filtration method: Unfiltered
Aging method: in Taransaud French oak barrels (3-5 years old) for 12 months
Vineyard: own
Altitude: 30-40 m
Direction of slope: west
Latitude: 43
Annual sunshine (hours): 1631 hours
Climate: Cold maritime
Average annual temperature: 9,8 ℃
Average annual precipitation: 1156 mm
Soil type: Volcanic clay
Average age of vines: Not specified
Trellising system: Vertical positioning of shoots
Harvesting method: Manual
Harvest year: 2023

Domaine MONT

THE STORY

Mr. Nakayama originally worked for an architectural design firm in Seattle, USA. After returning to Japan in 2012, he went to Hokkaido to teach snowboarding. 80% of instructors were farmers, as winter is the slow season for agriculture in Hokkaido. Through these encounters with farmers, he became intrigued by agriculture.

Off-season from spring to autumn for him, as an instructor, led him to work in a resort restaurant. It was then that he became sufficiently fascinated by wine to become a sommelier. He had originally intended to grow his own grapes, but had never learned about winemaking. That's why he went to Domaine Takahiko for training. After his training period from 2014 to 2016, he opened Domaine Mont himself.

Location of the current vineyard was an abandoned plot of land for 15 years that turned into a forest, So he had to cut down the trees one by one with a chainsaw and level out the land. Today, however, vineyard is certified to JAS organic standards and the grapes are grown organically at Domaine Mont.