2018 Smith & Hooper Reserve Merlot

The search is over. Finally, after much digging, we've found a classy, full-flavoured Merlot worth your consideration. Something substantial, with the sort of power and concentration you'd typically see in Bordeaux, except this Smith & Hooper Reserve Merlot comes with an Aussie accent.

What makes this red so deep and impressive is the fruit. Wrattonbully, the oft-forgotten region inland from Coonawarra, can produce genuinely world-class Merlot (see Brian Croser's Whalebone Vineyard Merlot Cabernet for the evidence), and here the region has delivered a proper, ripe, chunky red with deep fruit and firm 'I can't believe this has no Cabernet in the blend' tannins.