Chilean Merlot 101 here, folks. We love the intense plummy nose, with notes of red cherry and prune, with a slightly more baked, tarry fruit character. A straightforward wine, with so much to give.

Origin: It’s believed that the first wines made were in the Médoc region, in the west of France. Mainly Grown In: France leads the way here, with Bordeaux the big one. Also California, South Australia, central and northern Italy, plus Argentina. Key Facts: No matter how mer-little you know about wine, chances are you’ve heard of Merlot (pronounced “Mer-low”). Merlot is like a Golden Retriever; dependable (it ripens reliably well), lovable (especially for its chocolatey and soft plummy flavours), and able to get along with pretty much everyone (a champion in some of the most prized blends on the planet). Merlot is so approachable and smooth that it is often described as tasting “velvety”. Not sure when you last licked some velvet, but we did, and the Merlot definitely tasted much better than velvet. However, velvety is a fair way to describe the soft cushion-like comfort of how Merlot rolls across the palate — yum! Fun Fact: Merlot lost consumer popularity after the movie Sideways and many people started to lift their noses in the air towards it. However, all the meanwhile the red Bordeaux these same people were cosying up to was predominantly composed of Merlot!