WE
93
Wine Enthusiast
Photos are for display purposes only and may have an out-of-date vintage, bottle shape or label.
In Stock Online (*)
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Checkmate Merlot 'Silent Bishop' 2019

2 units available online.
Product description
Spencer Kelly’s first taste of wine-industry recognition came from some of the most iconic and prestigious wineries in Napa Valley. With each harvest and each season, he perfected his track record for coaxing the finest vintages out of distinguished vineyards.

CheckMate’s success had rippled all the way down to California, and the opportunity to join one of Canada’s most ambitious and celebrated wineries was irresistible. Some of the Okanagan’s most exceptional soils, old vines approaching 50 years of age and a commitment to making the highest quality wines aligned precisely with Spencer’s values as a Canadian winemaker.

Silent Bishop sits at an elevation of 1027 to 1306 ft. The fruit is handpicked off the cooler Western Benches (Oliver North, Golden Mile Bench, and Osoyoos West Bench) and is wild fermented. It spends 21 months in new French oak. The west side offers a multitude of red and black fruit nuances mixing tobacco and mocha with blackberries and raspberries, with scrubby desert notes underneath. A diversity of soils, aspects, and sun exposures leads to a complex Bordelais style.

93 Points - Wine Enthusiast

The aromas are forward, with notes of dark raspberry, fruit rollup, cedar, tar, dark plum and a whiff of mesquite smoke. The flavors are palate coating, showing depth, intensity and impressive freshness, with tart acidity. There's plenty of tannic structure around it all. It's beautiful.