Rosemount Estate Diamond Label - Merlot 2004

I've always tried Merlot as a blend, but never by itself before. As it was selling for a ridiculously low price - $6.97 to be exact - I thought to myself, "Why not now?"

Merlot has always been seen as the little brother to the more popular Cabernet Sauvignon; when it's blended (you'll never find it as Merlot Sauvignon), or at the shop shelves where Merlot are always placed at the back, near the fire escape.

However Merlot is starting to gain some recognition as a wine to be enjoyed on its own, thanks to the endless promotions and huge discounts on it. Yours truly was about to be sucked into the brilliant marketing ploy to encourage wine drinkers to pick up a bottle of Merlot again.

The verdict? Even though the winemakers put it a lot of effort into making this wine, it just doesn't have the "kick" and the body to make this a wine to enjoy. Sure it's smooth and plummy, but it can only be plummy for so long until it starts to taste like cough syrup.

Maybe it needs a couple more years to mature. But I'm the kind of person that lives only for today.

And today I'm going to get myself a nice bottle of Shiraz... ^_^