2003 Nova Wines Marilyn Merlot

Nova Wines in St. Helena had its beginnings in the 1980s when a group of Napa Valley friends bought grapes, made some Merlot at home, and considered how to give their wine a fanciful, imaginative name. Bob and Donna Holder and a few friends eventually were able to get a licensing agreement with the estate of Marilyn Monroe, and the group made their first commercial Marilyn Merlot in 1985. Today the wine is made at Napa Wine Co. and the parent company of the Marilyn wines is Nova Wines. Nova over the years has made makes numerous wines, from Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon to Sauvignon Blanc and sparkling wines, but all feature a unique label with an eye-catching, glamorous image of Marilyn Monroe. The name and labels have made the wines popular with collectors.

Napa Valley AVA is the most famous winemaking region in the United States and one of the most prestigious in the world. With nearly 43,000 acres of vineyards and more than 300 wineries, it is the heart of fine wine production in the United States. Winemaking started in Napa in 1838 when George C. Yount planted grapes and began producing wine commercially. Other winemaking pioneers followed in the late 19th century, including the founders of Charles Krug, Schramsberg, Inglenook and Beaulieu Vineyards. An infestation of phylloxera, an insect that attacks vine roots, and the onset of Prohibition nearly wiped out the nascent Napa wine industry in the early 20th century. But by the late 1950s and early 1960s Robert Mondavi and other visionaries were producing quality wines easily distinguishable from the mass-produced jug wines made in California’s Central Valley. Napa Valley’s AVA was established in 1983, and today there are 16 sub-appellations within the Napa Valley AVA. Many grapes grow well in Napa’s Mediterranean climate, but the region is best known for Cabernet Sauvignon. Chardonnay is also very successfully cultivated, and about 30% of the AVA’s acreage is planted to white grapes, with the majority of those grapes being Chardonnay,

The Merlot grape is such a deep blue that it is named for the blackbird. It’s an early ripening grape and one of the primary varietals used In Bordeaux. Merlot is also grown in the "International style," which is harvested later to bring out more tannins and body.