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View Full Version : Quick Handwritten Ink Review: Diamine Merlot



heath
November 13th, 2013, 12:48 PM
Close Ups Here: http://penpaperinkletter.com/quick-handwritten-ink-review-diamine-merlot/

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Pelikan-Vera
November 13th, 2013, 12:56 PM
nice cool ink.

hsianloon
November 13th, 2013, 01:36 PM
Thanks for the review. It does really reflect the name of the ink, may put it on my list of subdued reds I could use (Monaco red being the only one I have to date )

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk

The Good Captain
November 14th, 2013, 02:17 AM
This is really nice - just like Merlot!!!!

cedargirl
November 14th, 2013, 01:39 PM
This is the first ink I bought online! Still love it. I like it in a Medium nib to show off the shading.

Cake
November 14th, 2013, 02:47 PM
I quite like this, never thought to look at this one. Thank you for posting this.

I like mango pudding
November 15th, 2013, 12:47 AM
I find Merlot to be lighter than Grape, but darker than Syrah. I have both, but not Merlot.

VertOlive
November 15th, 2013, 08:21 PM
Delicious red!

KaBe
March 19th, 2014, 07:23 AM
Hi Heath,
I noticed you reviewed both the Merlot and the grape. Now, in your reviews, the merlot looks almost blackish, like eggplant; the grape looks purple. But that could be the pics: on the diamine site, the grape is almost black and the merlot a very dark purple.
So you get my confusion. Is it asking too much to have one picture where you use both merlot and grape? (So I really can see the difference and order the right colour)?

Thanks in advance
KaBe

heath
March 19th, 2014, 07:31 AM
Hi Heath,
I noticed you reviewed both the Merlot and the grape. Now, in your reviews, the merlot looks almost blackish, like eggplant; the grape looks purple. But that could be the pics: on the diamine site, the grape is almost black and the merlot a very dark purple.
So you get my confusion. Is it asking too much to have one picture where you use both merlot and grape? (So I really can see the difference and order the right colour)?

Thanks in advance
KaBe

I'm adding it to my list of things to do today.

heath
March 19th, 2014, 01:15 PM
http://penpaperinkletter.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/WP_20140319_009.jpg

KaBe
March 19th, 2014, 02:12 PM
wow, what a fast reply and what a great lineup. And so wonderfully confusing. In comparison (on my screen), the merlot now looks rather more brownish than purple. The private reserve looks promising though. Thanks

heath
March 19th, 2014, 02:26 PM
wow, what a fast reply and what a great lineup. And so wonderfully confusing. In comparison (on my screen), the merlot now looks rather more brownish than purple. The private reserve looks promising though. Thanks

Yeah, I'd not put the Merlot in the Purple camp at all. For me it is Red/Brown/Black.

jacksterp
March 26th, 2014, 11:34 PM
Handsome color with nice shading. Hard to go wrong with Diamine.

Thanks for the comparison shot!

KaBe
April 4th, 2014, 03:53 AM
Went to my favourite pen shop yesterday. He knew I'd be coming and he had a line-up of all purple's in stock (6 or 7).
So I can witness the differences between a screen and ink on paper. The Private Reserve ebony purple is (when just writing with it with a regular nib) just black. Nice black but black. Promising on screen, not what I was looking for once I saw it in writing. The other promising colour (Edgecumb) turned out to be far too flashy to be used in my job.
The Diamine Grape however turned out te be exactly what I was looking for. Very dark but clearly not black. Actually the coulour of a dark grape (the skin), colour close to eggplant (but slightly lighter).
So I've become a happy user of Diamine Grape (next to Sailor Pomgrenade and my own blend of green)

heath
April 4th, 2014, 06:25 AM
Went to my favourite pen shop yesterday. He knew I'd be coming and he had a line-up of all purple's in stock (6 or 7).
So I can witness the differences between a screen and ink on paper. The Private Reserve ebony purple is (when just writing with it with a regular nib) just black. Nice black but black. Promising on screen, not what I was looking for once I saw it in writing. The other promising colour (Edgecumb) turned out to be far too flashy to be used in my job.
The Diamine Grape however turned out te be exactly what I was looking for. Very dark but clearly not black. Actually the coulour of a dark grape (the skin), colour close to eggplant (but slightly lighter).
So I've become a happy user of Diamine Grape (next to Sailor Pomgrenade and my own blend of green)

Great choice. I's probably go for the plum if it wasn't needed in a work setting but the grape is likely the best for that of these for sure. The ebony blue from PR is better than the ebony purple in my opinion in not being just black.

Lady Onogaro
April 4th, 2014, 08:56 AM
I've tried Diamine Grape with an EF nib and it just looked black, but I bet it would really look great with a stub nib. I'm going to try that.

KaBe
April 5th, 2014, 07:10 AM
I've tried Diamine Grape with an EF nib and it just looked black, but I bet it would really look great with a stub nib. I'm going to try that.

I can imagine. I use it in my Lamy which has a nib (the one with the small gold insert) called 'fine' but writing medium-ish. I'd never put this in my Montegrappa because indeed it would probably look just black.

Apprenti
April 10th, 2014, 03:03 PM
Careful with Grape, it stains pretty bad. Nice colour though.

Merlot's one of my favourite inks :)

KaBe
April 11th, 2014, 11:57 AM
hi apprenti,
must be my lousy english but when you say 'stains pretty bad', do you mean it tends to drip (leak) or do you mean 'once you made a stain (like on your shirt), it's difficult to remove it'?

Apprenti
April 11th, 2014, 02:57 PM
No I mean it leaves behind a purple discolouration on plastic. It's mostly a problem with demonstrators, where the clear plastic becomes purple tinted plastic, and it would probably stain a shirt too I guess. It also has this weird gunky stuff that develops if you leave the cap off the pen for a couple of minutes.

Your English seems to be great, it was probably mine that was the problem and I'm British! :D