Prince Stirbey 2018 Merlot Rezerva Sec, ‘Ordinul de Malta’.

2018 Prince Stirbey Merlot Rezerva Sec, ‘Ordinul de Malta’:  14.50% Vol.

Our appreciation for the humanitarian projects and charitable activities of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta in Romania inspired us in 2011 to dedicate them a limited edition of the Stirbey winery: “Merlot Rezerva – Ordinul de Malta”. Produced from the best Merlot grapes in the Stirbey vineyard, manually picked and selected, carefully vinified, reducing technical interventions to a minimum, preserving the character of the grapes, typical for this variety and for the terroir of Dragasani. After fermentation on natural yeasts and maceration on skins for 6 weeks, the wine was racked into Romanian barriques – of which 50% new barrels – aged for 2 years and bottled without fine filtration.

The result is an elegant and well-balanced wine, with a bouquet of blackberries and ripe plums, leather tones, cinnamon and coffee beans. The texture of fine tannins, flavours of black pepper and bitter chocolate give the wine a persistent body, deep and long, but not heavy: a perfect balance between texture, acidity and flavours. The wine has a high ageing potential of at least 8-10 years.