VINOUS

Since the 2011 vintage, the Riserva Marchese Antinori has been produced entirely from grapes grown at Tenuta Tignanello. This has led to a reduction in production volume and a further leap in quality. A sparkling ruby colour, with a bouquet of dark wild cherries, graphite, violets and spices. Smooth and round on the palate, yet very juicy, with the French oak adding extra body and richness. SUPERIORE.DE

Ceretto's Barbaresco Asili (approx. 4,000 bottles) is the clearest and most complete of the winery's impressive Barbaresco collection. It reveals a fine sweetness of cherries and redcurrants on the nose, followed by an extremely silky and fine texture on the palate. Following on from the bright berry fruit, its bouquet reveals subtle notes of gravel and delicate, salty flavours. Overall, an accessible and highly elegant approach with great freshness, fine tannins and great ageing potential. SUPERIORE.DE

Between stone and altitude. The name already reveals where this wine gets its soul from: from the highest parcels of the Tenuta Costalunga in Sant'Ambrogio di Valpolicella, where the ground gives way to bare rock at 300 to 350 metres. Cresasso – a word that describes precisely this encounter in the local dialect: where earth meets stone, where the Corvina must put down its deepest roots in the barren, calcareous moraine soil with its high proportion of skeleton and chalky white inclusions. Sergio Zenato's vision was to create a wine that celebrates Corvina Veronese in its purest form – without the accompaniment of Rondinella or Corvinone, without the appassimento technique of Amarone. Instead, a slight over-ripening on the vine, hand-picked in the second half of October, when the grapes have reached their maximum concentration. Vinification follows the rhythm of the fruit: 15 days of maceration at 25-26°C, then 24 months of ageing in French tonneaux, followed by at least a further year of bottle ageing. Time as an ally, not an adversary.

Treat yourself to a big glass or better: decant the wildly racy Il Guercio, then a dark berry mix with black cherries and a hint of dark chocolate will be in the air. On the palate, equally juicy fruit, full-bodied with fine silky tannins, elegant and finely structured, with animating acidity, very precise and animating in the long finish. Potential for many years in the cellar. A not at all loud, but highly impressive wine full of elegance and the masterpiece of the winery. SUPERIORE.DE

Messorio has been undisputedly one of the best and rarest Merlots in Italy since the mid-1990s. It was named after the Tuscan wheat harvest, the most fundamental moment in the agricultural year – was created in 1994 from Eugenio Campolmi's (†2002) personal challenge to Merlot. It was not to be a tame, predictable wine, but a spirited thoroughbred, ready to make a grand entrance. The 2019 vintage epitomises the elegance of slow ripening without extreme heat. A mild winter with little rainfall, followed by cool March days and gradually rising temperatures in April, led to cautious development. The rainy, cool May slowed down the vegetation, while the hot start to June required intensive foliage work.

The 2019 Brunello vintage from Altesino stands proudly among its peers. The bouquet has a pronounced floral character with delightful notes of pressed rose petals and dried violets. The fruit tones are elegant and harmonious, ranging from light red cherries to redcurrants. Firm and well-structured on the palate, the multi-layered fruit is accentuated by a refined fennel and liquorice note. Long and stately in the final, great! SUPERIORE.DE

The Romanesque Pieve di San Marcellino was built in the year 1000. It still stands today – in the middle of the vineyards of Rocca di Montegrossi, seven kilometres south of Gaiole, at the southern tip of the Chianti Classico. The vineyard bears its name. And the vines that surround it are older than most of the appellations that appear on labels today. Marco Ricasoli-Firidolfi is a descendant of Baron Bettino Ricasoli – the "Iron Baron" who defined the formula for Chianti Classico in the 19th century. Not as a marketing idea, but as a genetic link to this soil. The vineyard has been certified organic since 2010 and has been planted with Pugnitello alongside Sangiovese since 2006 – an autochthonous Tuscan grape variety that was almost extinct in the 1980s. Pugnitello deepens the colour, thickens the structure and sharpens the profile of the Sangiovese grape. Hand-picked, separate fermentation of both varieties on wild yeasts in upright wooden tanks, 24 months in Allier barriques and tonneau, bottled unfiltered. Only produced in outstanding vintages – the 2020 is one of them.

In that year, when the wine world still believed in rules and traditions seemed sacrosanct, Sergio Manetti did something unheard of: in 1977, he vinified pure Sangiovese. One hundred per cent. No white grapes, no Canaiolo to round it off, no compromises. In Radda in Chianti, in the heart of Chianti Classico, where such boldness resonated particularly loudly, the region’s first pure Sangiovese was born – le Pergole Torte, named after the crooked pergolas in the steep vineyard. Giulio Gambelli, the legendary Sangiovese whisperer, stood by Manetti’s side. Together they created a wine that rewrote the rules of the game. The Consorzio del Chianti Classico, of course, balked, as this wine did not comply with the regulations, lacking the prescribed blend of other varieties. Yet critics and collectors worldwide cheered. What began as an affront became a legend. In 1981, Montevertine left the Consorzio – not out of defiance, but out of conviction. Out of love for Sangiovese in its purest, unadulterated form. Since 1982, the labels have been adorned with portraits of women by Alberto Manfredi, a friend and artist from Reggio Emilia. A new face for every vintage, a work of art on every bottle.

In 1994, Rita Tua and Virgilio Bisti set aside two barrels of Merlot without realising that they were creating a cult wine that would catapult the winery onto the world stage. The name comes from a small stream that flows close to the vineyards, as inconspicuous as the beginnings of the project itself. Then in 2000 came the sensation: Robert Parker awarded one hundred points, the first ever for an Italian red wine. The Redigaffi became a legend, the epitome of Tuscan Merlot mastery, compared to Pétrus and Masseto – and yet independent, characterised by the metal-rich hills of the Maremma, by loam and clay, by its proximity to the sea ... The vines grow in the centre of the vineyard, where the clay content is highest – where Merlot finds its greatest density. Hand-selected in three passes, only fully ripe grapes. Vinification with long maceration, then eighteen to twenty months in new French barriques, followed by months in the bottle before the wine leaves the estate.

First bottled in 1967, Roncaglie (formerly Barbaresco Masseria) comes from a vineyard in Bricco di Neive and is essentially vinified and aged like a Barolo. Since the 2018 vintage, it now comes from a small parcel that used to belong to the Socré Barbaresco winery and is now deliberately released a year later to ensure greater harmony and balance. Floral and spicy notes merge with a core of rich, generous fruit in a generous Barbaresco based on pure resonance. Barbaresco Roncaglie is vinified and matured in the same way as Vietti's single-vineyard Barolos. This means long fermentation, six months in French oak and more than two years in barrique. This, together with the broad shoulders of Neive, results in a noble Nebbiolo with clear hints of Barolo and impressive depth. SUPERIORE.DE

Terlano I (pronounced Primo) Grande Cuvée is the name of the white flagship of Cantina Terlano. In recent years, the winery has made a name for itself worldwide with its long-lasting, mineral white wines. Even years later, the wines still present themselves with top freshness and great complexity. With this long history of white wines, since the 2011 vintage there is now a wine in which the essence of Terlan is expressed in an even more focussed way. Terlaner I Grande Cuvée combines the Pinot Blanc, Chardonnay and Sauvignon grape varieties from the Winkl, Kreuth and Vorberg vineyards to create a masterpiece which, due to its limited and exclusive nature, will only be available from hand-picked retailers and in selected top restaurants.

Terre Brune: A monument to the art of Sardinian viticulture, borne by the year 2020, which wonderfully captured the essence of the island in its balance between heat and night-time equalisation. For Terre Brune, this meant a late harvest accompanied by cool nights. The result: maturity in harmony with freshness, expressive and enriching. Incidentally, the 2020 vintage was a gift of ripeness everywhere in southern Sardinia. Warm spells were balanced out by Atlantic breezes and the grapes remained healthy and aromatic. The late harvest ensured a rich, but never overripe concentration – ideal conditions for a wine with lively acidity and body in harmony.

A name that breathes history: since 2011, the grapes for Marchese Antinori have come exclusively from the vineyards of Tenuta Tignanello – the legendary location that lies at the heart of Chianti Classico between the gentle hills of the Greve and Pesa valleys. Here, where the Medici once walked and where the Antinori family has been realising its visionary wine philosophy since 1850, one of the purest interpretations of Sangiovese thrives on stony limestone soils. The 2022 vintage tells of a summer of extremes – little rain until August, hot spells in June and July. But the old vines proved resilient: even budding, regular flowering, perfectly ripe grapes for harvest. In the winery's cellars, winemaking was carried out with classic precision: gentle destemming, gentle pressing, one week of fermentation in stainless steel tanks. Ten days of maceration using gentle methods – an extraction that combines intensity with elegant, supple tannins. Natural acid degradation until the end of the year, then twelve months of ageing in French and Hungarian oak barrels, followed by a further twelve months of bottle ageing before release.

26 generations, since 1385 – no other estate in the world of wine can boast such an unbroken history. And yet the Marchese Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva label is not a museum piece, but a living testament: since the 2011 vintage, made exclusively from the vineyards of Tenuta Tignanello, the estate situated between the Greve and Pesa river valleys, which has shaped 20th-century Tuscan wine history more than any other patch of land in Chianti Classico. 319 hectares, of which 165 hectares are under vine – predominantly Sangiovese, supplemented by small proportions of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

Three years after the Annata, Romano and his sons launch a small edition of the same vintage in large formats. The 2015 Valpolicella Superiore Monte Lodoletta is a particularly elegant, pretty and typical expression of the Dal Forno style. Black cherries dipped in rum, plum sauce, brown spices and a hint of cocoa rise from the glass. Silky and polished, it seamlessly washes over the palate with ripe red and blackcurrants, while leaving minerals and a fine layer of tannins behind. Spicy acids add tension as the wine tapers off in a structured way, with notes of mocha and mentholated herbs that linger. SUPERIORE.DE

2016 was not an easy year in Valpolicella – and Romano Dal Forno still delivered. That sounds obvious, but it's not: in years like 1992, 2005, 2007 or 2014, there was simply no Amarone. That is the currency in which trust is bought here. Dal Forno Romano has its own clock ticking for the release of the large bottles: they come onto the market three years after the 0.75 litre bottle. What this means for 2016 is obvious. After six weeks of appassimento, 36 months in new barriques and long maturation in the large format, this Valpolicella has reached a level of maturity that only the large glass can appreciate.

Ornato 2021 comes from the single vineyard of the same name in Serralunga d'Alba, exposed to the south – a cru with a distinctive altitude and calcareous soils that captures the depth and power of the Barolo region like no other. The 2021 vintage was characterised by a cool spring, a stable summer without extreme heat and a long, dry autumn. These conditions allowed the Nebbiolo to ripen slowly and evenly, giving the grapes aromatic complexity with full phenolic ripeness. The wine was fermented traditionally after a long maceration period and then matured for around 30 months in French oak – partly in tonneau and partly in barrique.

2017 was a year of drought in Sicily. Little rain, high temperatures, a yield of just 67 double centners per hectare – significantly below what San Lucio usually produces in more balanced years. The vines, accustomed for decades to this barren, calcareous soil, weathered the drought with the serenity of old Alberello vines. The blend for this vintage returns closely to the original proportions of 1959: 58% Nero d'Avola, 42% Perricone. Hand-harvested at 480 metres, south-southeast exposure, traditional fermentation in stainless steel, 20 days' maceration, 18 months in new French barriques made from Allier and Tronçais oak.

In 1959, Count Giuseppe Tasca d'Almerita planted Perricone and Nero d'Avola on the San Lucio hill using the Alberello system – an investment in a future that hardly any Sicilian could have imagined at the time. In 1970, the first vintage was released: the first single-vineyard wine the island had ever produced. The 2012 vintage showcases the blend in its most complex form: 63% Nero d'Avola forms the foundation, complemented by 37% of other red varieties from the estate, including Perricone and small proportions of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah. Traditional red wine fermentation in stainless steel, 20 days' contact with the skins, full malolactic fermentation, followed by 18 months in newLiters made from Allier and Tronçais oak.

In the upper areas of the historic Contrada Rovittello – at an altitude of around 700 metres, on volcanic rock with a high basalt content – the old Nerello Mascalese vines of Il Musmeci take root. Some of them are even over 100 years old, their roots penetrating deep into the barren, mineral-rich soil. The north-eastern flank of Mount Etna provides a cool microclimate with a strong contrast between day and night – decisive for the aromatic precision. The name Il Musmeci is a tribute to the former owner of the parcel, Cav. Santi Musmeci, whose respect for terroir and tradition became the legacy of this wine.