Unfiltered Merlot Reserve (1985)

About this wine

This 1985 Newton Vineyard Merlot Reserve is an estate Merlot from Napa Valley that was bottled without filtration, a technique Newton used on some of its red wines. The nose shows dried cherry, leather, cedar, and a hint of tobacco with underlying earth and spice. On the palate the wine is medium in body, textured and mouthfilling, with softened tannins and a long finish that recalls stewed plum, black tea, and savory forest floor notes. The color is mature and brick edged, and the wine’s balance reflects extended bottle age with fruit that is now tertiary rather than fresh. Historically Newton vinified many parcels separately and used careful barrel aging before bottling, practices that contributed to this wine’s layered profile and longevity.

About the grape

Merlot is a classic Bordeaux variety brought to Napa in the 20th century, valued for its soft tannins, ripe plum character, and ability to add flesh and mid palate weight to blends and single varietal bottlings. At Newton Vineyard Merlot was an early plant for the estate, first made into wine in the late 1970s, and for the 1985 Unfiltered Merlot Reserve the variety was sourced from Spring Mountain hillside sites with relatively shallow, well drained volcanic soils and cooler mountain temperatures that promote acid retention. In this bottling Newton favored an unfiltered approach and restrained ripeness to preserve Merlot's texture and aromatic lift, using careful hand harvesting and low intervention winemaking to keep the grape's pure character and age worthy structure.

Quick facts

• 🌄 Newton Vineyard was founded in 1977 by Peter Newton and was one of the first producers high on Spring Mountain, so a 1985 Merlot Reserve comes from one of Napa’s early mountain pioneers.
• 🔬 Newton became famous for embracing unfiltered winemaking as part of its identity, later calling out “Unfiltered” on labels and treating minimal intervention as a house philosophy.
• 🌱 Merlot was among the very first varieties Newton planted and the estate’s earliest vintages included Merlot, so the 1985 Merlot Reserve ties directly to the winery’s original plantings.
• 🕰️ A 1985 bottle is a true time capsule—over 40 years old in 2026—offering the chance to taste a distinctly older-school Napa style focused on elegance rather than high alcohol.
• 🔎 Bottles from Newton’s 1980s run, including Merlot reserves, regularly surface on auction and collector lists, making them sought-after curiosities for Napa collectors.

Palate profile

Producer

Newton Vineyard, established in 1977 by English businessman Peter Newton and his wife Su Hua, was a pioneering winery in Napa Valley's Spring Mountain District. The estate spanned 560 acres, with vineyards terraced at elevations ranging from 500 to 1,600 feet, allowing for diverse microclimates and soil types ideal for Bordeaux varietals. Notably, Newton was among the first in the region to produce unfiltered wines, emphasizing a natural expression of the terroir. In 2001, the winery became part of the LVMH portfolio, aligning with other prestigious wine estates. Despite its storied history and contributions to Napa Valley winemaking, Newton Vineyard announced its permanent closure in early 2025, following significant damage from the 2020 Glass Fire.