Merus 2005 with diner

Finally we had a chance to taste Merus 05. After the rave review by Piroca, it was overdue but we needed a right food with it. First, when we pulled the cork, there are lots of "wine sludge" which after drying became wine stones/crystals. Because of this, we decanted for several hours before tasting. Although we can not describe this wine as eloquently as Piroca did, it is a wonderful wine. The fruits are plentiful but not over-the-top and went very well with mild blue cheese to begin. The entre was a very simple steak: Medium rare fillet mignon with sauce made of port wine and balsamic vinegar reduction infused with shiitake mushroom stem, shallots, and rosemary. This was accompanied by a side of oven fried French fries, Shiitake mushroom, jumbo asparagus and carrot. Classic "turf" and the wine went extremely well. This highly extracted wine brimmed with black fruits, well integrated tannin, even this young, enhanced and complimented the food so nicely.