Vinum

Villa di Capezzana has been the Tenuta's flagship since 1925 and is a living testimony to Tuscan wine culture. This Carmignano DOCG epitomises the vision of the Contini Bonacossi family, who for five generations have been cultivating the heritage of a wine estate whose first documented mention dates back to 804. In 1975, Carmignano was the first Tuscan DOC zone ever to officially include Cabernet Sauvignon in the assemblage – centuries before the Super Tuscans discovered this idea for themselves. The tradition goes back to the 16th century, when Caterina de' Medici had Cabernet cuttings brought to Carmignano from Bordeaux.

The grapes for the estate's classic Barolo come from the vineyards/communes of Ornato, La Serra, Briccolina in Serralunga d'Alba, Gustava and Garretti in Grinzane Cavour, Roncaglie in La Morra, Ravera in Novello and, from the 2015 vintage, also from Mosconi in Monforte d'Alba. It is more of a traditional, classic Barolo with an exciting bouquet of deep, dark fruit and a pretty potpourri of rose petals, spices, smoke and tar. It is full-bodied and firm on the palate, opening up with plenty of dense tannins, very powerful, with pressure and a full bite on the finish, designed for a long life. SUPERIORE.DE

Since the first bottling in 2004, this wine has embodied the purest and most direct interpretation of Bolgheri à la Le Macchiole - a Rosso of grace and intensity, easy to drink without compromising on structure and complexity. The historic winery, founded in 1983 by Eugenio Campolmi and Cinzia Merli as pioneers of the region, has distilled its understanding of terroir with this Bordeaux blend of 40% Merlot, 20% each of Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. The challenging 2023 vintage with its changeable summer demanded precise decisions during the harvest – a test that Le Macchiole's experienced team under Cinzia Merli passed with flying colours. 15 days of maceration in steel, followed by 10 months of ageing, 70% in used barriques and 30% in concrete, give the wine its characteristic balance.

From the oldest Merlot parcel in the Le Sondraie vineyards comes Bell'Aja's flagship wine – a wine that impressively demonstrates the ambition of the San Felice project in Bolgheri. Since 2016, this Tenuta has completed the Tuscan wine interpretation of the historic group: from the hills of Chianti Classico to the prestigious vineyards of Montalcino to this radiant jewel on the Etruscan Coast. Bell'Aja Superiore embodies the pure essence of a unique terroir: 95% Merlot from the Tenuta's most venerable vines is combined with 5% Cabernet Sauvignon to create a wine of impressive power and opulence. The sandy-loamy soils of the Le Sondraie zone, just five kilometres from the Tyrrhenian Sea, give this Bordeaux-inspired blend the maritime minerality that makes Bolgheri one of the most fascinating terroirs in the wine world.

The grapes come from family-owned plots in Serralunga d'Alba, La Morra, Grinzane Cavour, Monforte and Mosconi. Each vineyard is harvested separately by hand and fermented in stainless steel; long maceration times with gentle remontages ensure a fine, complete extraction. For ageing, the winery predominantly uses large Slavonian oak barrels (botti), supplemented by a smaller proportion of French oak, which adds lustre to the texture without masking the origin. Thanks to a stable summer and cool nights in autumn, 2020 produced ripe, healthy harvestwith a clear acidity line and precise aromas.

The Vigna del Sorbo vineyard is located directly in front of the winery. The south-west facing vineyard with Galestro soils covers 8 hectares at an altitude of 450 metres. The Riserva was first produced in 1985 and has been labelled Gran Selezione since the 2010 vintage.

Podere Uccelliera is located on the south-eastern slope of the hill of Castelnuovo dell'Abate, where the view falls on the extinct volcano Monte Amiata and the breeze from the Orcia Valley blows through the vineyards. Not a large estate, not a marketing machine. Nine hectares, one man, one idea of wine. Andrea Cortonesi comes from a Mezzadria family that cultivated these lands for generations, long before Brunello was a word the world knew. In 1986, he bought the old Podere – with centuries-old olive trees, half a hectare of vines and the firm intention of creating something lasting here. He had previously worked at Ciacci Piccolomini, Poggio di Sotto and Mastrojanni – as a cellar master, as an observer, as a learner. What he took with him was not a recipe. It was a flair. He vinified his first Brunello in 1991.

The estate's top wine, named after the owner, is the result of many years of work in the vineyard and dates back to the year 2000, when the winery began to replant many of its own plots with Sangiovese. To this day, Sergio Zingarelli pursues the goal of interpreting his existing terroir as authentically as possible. The result is the highest classification Gran Selezione, which is confirmed every year by the consortium and is only awarded to the best wines in the appellation.Rich ruby colour. Concentrated nose of herbs, black cherry, chocolate, earthy notes and oak spice. Juicy and soft fruit on the palate, refined tannins, glides dynamically and spicy into a respectable finish. SUPERIORE.DE

A Barolo from a great vintage: the 2021 wine year brought a long growing season with clear day-night amplitudes and precise harvest: fully ripe phenolics, bright acidity, impeccable health. The grapes come from family-owned plots in Serralunga d'Alba, La Morra, Grinzane Cavour, Monforte and Mosconi. Each vineyard is fermented separately in stainless steel; prolonged maceration with gentle extraction, followed by unhurried malolactic fermentation. For the ageing process, the winery primarily uses large Slavonian oak barrels (botti), discreetly supplemented by French oak.

Cerretta is one of the most prestigious crus of Serralunga d'Alba – a site that Giovanni Rosso has always cultivated with particular dedication. Here, at an altitude of around 350 metres, barren, chalky marl soils meet south and south-east exposure. The result is Barolo with impressive depth, carried by a striking minerality that is recognisable even at a young age. The 2020 vintage brought harmonious ripeness and perfect phenolic development. After being harvested by hand, the grapes were gently pressed and fermented in concrete tanks for around 25 days. The wine was then matured for a good two years in large oak barrels, which emphasise the character of the vineyard without over-moulding it.

Intense ruby red Vino Nobile Riserva with a spicy bouquet of aromas of dried fruit, cinnamon, cloves and liquorice. Smooth on the palate with a variety of nuances, beautiful fullness, structure and intensity, supple tannins. Very elegant pleasure at an excellent price. SUPERIORE.DE

Caparzos Riserva 2019 is a big, powerful wine that needs at least a few years to mature. Dark and brooding, this Riserva shows the more masculine side of Sangiovese. Black cherry, plum, leather, spices and tobacco lie on a firm beam of acidity and tannin. This red has the explosive energy and finesse of the dream 2019 vintage and will need some time to mature before all the facets of this highly personalised wine come together – but as always with top wines: patience is rewarded! SUPERIORE.DE

Only 2,000 numbered bottles of the 2018 debut vintage of the "Vigna del Bersagliere" Morellino di Scansano Riserva were filled. The grapes for the new top Sangiovese from Podere 414 come from a small, organically cultivated vineyard of just 1.3 hectares above the winery. It is aged for 36 months in 500 Liters and then refined for 24 months in the bottle. Bright ruby red in colour. Primary aromas of ripe, dark fruit with spicy notes in the glass. Firmly structured on the palate, again dark fruit, plus plums and earthy tones. It is still young and somewhat angular in the glass, but its exceptional style and good acidity/tannin structure already suggest very good ageing potential. SUPERIORE.DE

Carmignano is Italy's best-kept secret: a DOCG of just 110 hectares – smaller than some Bordeaux châteaux. It was here, just outside Florence, that Caterina de' Medici brought Cabernet vines from France in the 16th century. While the rest of Tuscany invented the Super Tuscans centuries later, Carmignano had long since reached its goal. Il Sasso comes from the cru of the same name in Santa Cristina a Mezzana: two and a half hectares, thirty-year-old vines, clay and galestro at an altitude of 250 metres. Seventy per cent Sangiovese, plus Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and a touch of Cabernet Franc – the classic Carmignano formula in the signature style of Silvia Vannucci. Fermented with natural yeasts, almost three weeks on the skins, then twelve months in used French barriques – no new wood, nothing should distract from the terroir. Bottled unfiltered and matured in the bottle for a further six months.

Brunello di Montalcino has been produced at the Argiano estate since 1888. This means that this estate has been there from the very beginning, when this grape variety, this place and this name began to write one of Italy's greatest wine stories. More than a century in a single location, guided by a single conviction: "Il Brunello è l'anima di Argiano – elegance, finesse and identity." Sant'Angelo in Colle lies in south-western Montalcino, the warmest and most distinctly Mediterranean part of the appellation. The soils consist of marl, ancient clays and limestone in high concentration – compact and mineral-rich – a site that lends the Sangiovese a depth quite different from that of the soils to the north. Organic cultivation, limited yields, vines between 15 and 60 years old.

In the annals of Tuscan wine history, there are vineyards that bear witness to dynasties and eras, and the Vigna dell'Impero is one of these living monuments. In 1935, in that fateful year when Europe was on the eve of great upheavals, the Savoia royal family had a vineyard planted on their hunting reserve in Valdarno di Sopra, which is now one of the most venerable terroirs in Tuscany. Three hectares of terraced vineyards, planted by hand at an altitude of 300 metres, where the Sangiovese vines dig their roots deep into the stony, galestro-rich soil. Antonio Moretti Cuseri recognised the exceptional quality of this ancient site and decided in 2012 to create a limited edition from this historic cru. Only in the best vintages, in numbered bottles, as a tribute to 85 years of winegrowing history. The Sangiovese in Purezza undergoes a particularly gentle, one-month maceration to extract all the noble components of the grapes harvested at optimum phenolic ripeness. 24 months of ageing in large 15 and 25 hectolitre barrels, followed by months of bottle ageing without filtration – to preserve the purest terroir notes.

Castelnuovo dell'Abate has a character all of its own – rougher, denser and more mineral-driven than many other parts of the appellation. The loamy-sandy soils with their high proportion of stone, the vineyards situated between 150 and 350 metres, the shelter provided by Monte Amiata, and the cool nights from the Orcia Valley: anyone who plants vines here will produce Sangiovese with real character. Andrea Cortonesi has been planting vines here for almost four decades. 2021 proved a challenging year for this terroir – and for the winemaker. The late frost in April hit lower-lying plots hard, and the harvest was around 15% smaller overall than the previous year. A hot, dry summer followed, before two spells of rain in the second half of August provided the vineyards with water and gave the grapes their final aromatic depth. The long September nights did the rest: phenolic ripeness, without any signs of heat stress, and without compromising on freshness. What Uccelliera subsequently brought into the cellar was concentrated, healthy, clear – and possessed that crisp fruit intensity that makes Castelnuovo wines so distinctive.

The sandy soils north of Monforte d'Alba give this Barolo its immense power and structure. The bouquet is very open and appealing with dark cherries and raspberries, as well as notes of mint, cedar wood, rose petals and sage. Very lively and expressive on the palate, with deep beauty, seamlessly contoured and spectacular resonance. A fabulous wine from a very good vintage, classic and exotic at the same time. SUPERIORE.DE

Since 1995, Le Cupole has been the accessible gateway to the world of the legendary Tenuta di Trinoro, yet at this visionary winery, "accessible" never means compromise. In the Val d'Orcia, where southern Tuscany reveals its wild and unspoilt side, near Sarteano on the border with Umbria and Lazio, the eccentric scion of the Cinzano empire and nephew of the American painter Cy Twombly created a wine paradise at an altitude of 500 to 700 metres, which was initially considered madness. Le Cupole is made from the same Bordeaux blend as the great Tenuta di Trinoro – Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot – but comes from younger vines on deeper, less extreme soils. The proportions vary depending on the vintage in order to best reflect the characteristics of the harvest.

A journey through time on five hectares: Giovanni Manetti is a man who knows how to unravel historical secrets. When he discovered drawings from the 15th century in the archives of the University of Florence that showed that the hill of San Leolino was once completely planted with vines, this was the key to an extraordinary revitalisation project. Where for centuries there had only been olive trees – with the exception of a small plot from the 1970s –the Terrazze di San Leolino were created anew. The terroir tells a different story to the famous Vigna del Sorbo: here, at an altitude of 450 metres, it is not the slatey Galestro that dominates, but the calcareous Alberese soil. This geological peculiarity gives San Leolino its unmistakable character – mineral, salty, with a freshness that immediately reminds the nose of crushed stones and earthy notes.

Sauvignon Andrius matures on the lees for six months and is a lively, well-structured white wine with great varietal typicity. Ripe peaches, dried apricots, juicy honeydew melon, candied almonds, flowers and a hint of mint and white pepper combine with the elegant style to create a remarkable overall picture. Great class! SUPERIORE.DE

Some vineyards carry their history within them like annual rings in an old tree. Vigna 10 on the Brancaia hill near Castellina is such a place. When Brigitte and Bruno Widmer bought the abandoned estate in 1981, they immediately recognised the potential of this plot of land – a gentle south-facing slope at 230 metres, clay soils that retain water and an exposure that allows the Sangiovese to reach full maturity without overtaxing it. Eighteen years later, in 1999, the vineyard was replanted – not with just any clones, but with five of the most promising Sangiovese selections from the ambitious "Chianti Classico 2000" research project, which has been researching and preserving the genetic diversity of this grape variety since the 1980s.

Montalcino in November 2008. Gianni Brunelli's thread broke – as Laura herself put it (he passed away). Anyone familiar with the elegance with which the winery has been run since then will understand that this was not the beginning of an end, but rather a different kind of continuity: quieter, more focussed, perhaps even more resolute. Laura Brunelli, biologist, Sardinian, soul of two institutions for decades – osteria Le Logge in Siena and the wineries on the slopes of Montalcino – has not replaced Gianni. She has carried on. And that's a difference you can feel in the glass.