# Merlot Cru Selection (2020)

- **Producer:** Marjan Simčič Domaine
- **Colour:** red
- **Type:** still
- **Grapes:** Merlot
- **Region:** Primorski, Slovenia
- **Style:** Classic
- **Alcohol:** 14.0%
- **Average price:** €32
- **Vegan:** Yes
- **Contains sulphites:** Yes
- **When to drink:** Now or Later
- **Serving temperature:** 16–18 °C
- **Aromas & flavours:** blackberry, plum, blueberry, herbaceous, black pepper, coffee, cedar, vanilla, smoke, leather, tobacco, forest floor

## About this wine

The Simčič family has been crafting wine in the picturesque hills of Goriška Brda since 1860. Today, fifth-generation winemaker Marjan Simčič has elevated the estate to international cult status. The vineyards uniquely straddle the border between Slovenia and Italy, where the warm Mediterranean sea breezes collide with the cool Alpine winds from the Julian Alps. This dramatic microclimate, combined with the region's signature poor, mineral-rich marl soils known locally as 'opoka', forces the vines to dig deep for nutrients, resulting in wines of exceptional structure, minerality, and longevity.

## Interesting facts

- The estate uses a rare, loose-bunched Merlot clone identical to the one grown at Pomerol's legendary Château Pétrus.
- The vineyards straddle the Slovenian-Italian border, combining Alpine freshness with Mediterranean warmth.
- The wine is aged for an impressive 42 months in French oak barriques before bottling without filtration.

## Food pairing

The wine's robust structure, firm tannins, and vibrant acidity require rich, savory dishes with high protein and fat content to soften the tannins. Earthy elements like mushrooms or game complement the complex herbal and oak-derived notes of the wine.

## Wine making process

The grapes are meticulously hand-harvested from 21 to 26-year-old vines in late September, with yields strictly limited to ensure concentration. Spontaneous fermentation is carried out using only indigenous yeasts in 5,000-liter stainless steel tanks. The wine undergoes skin contact and maceration for 14 to 21 days, followed by gentle pneumatic pressing. It is then matured for 42 months in 225-liter French oak barriques (up to 30% new oak) and refined for an additional 6 months in the bottle. To preserve its natural character and complexity, the wine is bottled unfined and unfiltered.