Tasted on a warm summer’s day, the Blackbird Dissonance shines like the sun and refreshes with its polished style and sophisticated flavor. There is a new trend toward “luxury” Sauvignon Blanc in California these days and this bottling gives the bargain hunter a glimpse into a more rarified world. The pristine Sauvignon Blanc is balanced by the creamy Semillon resulting in a something similar to a pear galette a la mode. Sourced largely from the esteemed Hudson Vineyard, there is real pedigree here and the humble price makes this a true value for those looking for something other than Chardonnay.

The Bespoke Collection Winery

Purchased by Michael Polenske in 2003, Blackbird Vineyards (a former walnut orchard first planted with 5, 717 Merlot vines in 1997) is now an ultra premium label in its own right. Fittingly, the word 'Merlot' is French patois for 'little blackbird.'

An early harbinger of Blackbird's potential arose when Mia Klein of Dalla Valle fame created a Blackbird Vineyard designate for her highly acclaimed 1999 Selene Merlot (no less than 95% of the fruit in the bottle must be from the named vineyard). Three of the top wine critics in the industry - Robert Parker, Stephen Tanzer, and Wine Spectator's James Laube - scored this wine in the 90s.

Blackbird's inaugural 2003 bottling, culled from a small crush of grapes that weren't already claimed by other vintners was awarded 98 points by Vinfolio, proclaiming it, "the best Merlot nobody had ever heard of." ACME FINE WINES news was equally enthusiastic, saying, "it is with wines like this that we never question why we are in this business." Blackbird's 2003 Merlot was also given a score of 95 points by Vintrust, which praised its complexity and richness, proclaiming it, "hedonistic in length," and our Flocking Merlot was born.