Urlice Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot
Architect and musician (respectively) turned winemakers Bilge Benisü Öğünlü and Reha Öğünlü make wine they way they like it.
After spending more than 15 years in America, they admit their palate was shaped by the many American and European wines they had during those years. So when they returned to Turkey to start their own vineyard in Urla, it felt natural to plant French varieties. Friends of the slow food movement, they take their time with their wine and attribute its ability to age well to a combination of this care and good cellaring practices.
Their wine is always a little bit of a surprise to people I know. One hears “Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot” and immediately forms an assumption of what the wine will taste like. In a country overrun with over extracted, over oaked Bordeaux style blends, Urlice’s stands out as something very different.
Urlice Cabernet Sauvignon Merlot 2013 Tasting Notes
The nose began with a lot of green notes. But not the capsicum/stemmy aromas indicative of underripe fruit. These were herby greens like menthol, bay leaf and dried oregano. And yes, okay, also some green pepper. Black pepper corns, dried figs, and a hint of soy sauce completed a complex and more savory than not bouquet. Big, slightly rough tannins exploded with flavors of dried fruits and herbs, tobacco, savory, and earth.
Overall a nicely balanced full-bodied wine with firm acidity and 14% abv that manages to stand out in a sea of Cabernet Merlot blends.