and more:
• Antinori - Tignanello & Solaia
• Antinori - Guado al Tasso
• IWM in Miami

A Note from Sergio

The Tuscan hills are known for their great beauty and wines. Here, noble Sangiovese displays her brilliance and numerous personalities through the various strains that have adapted to individual vineyards and microclimates. When blended with complementary grapes she is capable of framing superb wines which seem more familiar to non-Italian wine drinkers. Conquering armies such as Napoleon's are responsible for bringing international varietals to Italy, but it wasn't until 1942 that their presence set the stage for Toscana's wine renaissance. That is when Italy's first relevant traveling enologist, Tancredi Biondi Santi, helped Mario Incisa della Rocchetta plant Cabernet Sauvignon at his Tenuta San Guido estate a few miles from the coast.

In 1968, Mario's cuvee of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc was named Sassicaia and changed the course of Italian wine. While tradition is Italy's strength, it's important to recognize that it has always welcomed change, and Italians' taste preferences have always evolved. After all, Nebbiolo of Barolo was used primarily to create a sweeter wine until it was altered by Louis Oudart in the 1840s, and the preferred wine of Montalcino during the 16th century was the dry Vermiglio, which later lost favor to the sweet Moscadelletto. The efforts of Tancredi and Mario, though pioneering, were also a part of the constant evolution of Italian wine that is necessary but which suffers abuse at the hands of less scrupulous winemakers. Building on the success of the pioneering "Super" vini da tavola, Bolgheri and the rest of Toscana experienced a proliferation of international varietals. Even those who respect and uphold tradition opened the door to change when wines like Tignanello in 1971, Solaia in 1978, Grattamacco Rosso in 1982, Sammarco in 1980, Guado al Tasso in 1990, and Vigna d'Alceo in 1996 charted the course for Toscana's success. While I tend to prefer monovarietal wines and the efforts of men like Sergio Manetti (of Montevertine), the blends featured here are among the best Italy has to offer and are mandatory staples for any enthusiast's cellar.

Please note that many of today's featured wines are available in very limited quantities. Read on below to learn more about these important blends. Should you have additional questions or if you would like to purchase the wines, contact a Portfolio Manager at 212.473.2323.

My best,
Sergio

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Castello dei Rampolla

The cellars of the Rampolla winery, near Panzano in the heart of the Classico, or historical, production zone for Chianti, date back to the 13th century. Since 1739 the Di Napoli family has owned and managed this legendary wine house. The estate is a classic Tuscan farmhouse operation situated on 128 hectares of calcareous soil about 360 meters above sea level. The vineyards are ideal for Sangiovese, which achieves particular vigor and potential for long aging. Today, current owners Luca and Maurizia, the children of Alceo Di Napoli, carry on their father's legacy of hand-crafted wines. In a move to take their father's philosophy one step further, they have begun to convert the estate to 100% biodynamic farming and vine-tending (only 35 hectares of their property are under vine). The family combines this approach in the vineyard with its modern, well-equipped cellars to produce world-class wines in collaboration with internationally renowned enologist Giacomo Tachis.

Vigna d'Alceo
Introduced in 1996 in homage to their beloved father, Vigna d'Alceo (or "Alceo’s Vineyard") has won the coveted Tre Bicchieri Gambero Rosso award with every vintage. Alceo's children make roughly 20,000 bottles per year of this late-September harvest blend of Cabernet Sauvignon (around 85%) and Petit Verdot (15%). The grapes for this cru wine are grown exclusively in the Alceo vineyard located in Greve, one of the five original townships for the production of Chianti. Saturated ruby-purple with a tiny clear rim. Graphite, blackberry, cassis, and maraschino cherries on the deep, potent nose. Black fruits, plum preserves, sweet oak, and licorice permeate the palate. Succulent and juicy, with abundant glycerin, round tannins, sufficient supporting acidity, and a lengthy finish.

Castello dei Rampolla 2003 Vigna d'Alceo $179.00
Castello dei Rampolla 2000 Vigna d'Alceo $185.00
Castello dei Rampolla 1997 Vigna d'Alceo $229.00

Sammarco
Only 30,000 bottles are made of this hand-crafted 95% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Sangiovese Super Tuscan blend. Saturated ruby streaked with dark purple. Taut and closed in youthful concentration. A stimulating bouquet of red plum, black currant, cigar and lead pencil. The rich flavors lurking in the full-bodied palate precisely reflect the nose and finish long with ripe yet tongue-clenching tannins.

Special Note on the 1990
Garnet shades edge the medium ruby core. The 1990 has evolved gracefully and now exhibits complex aromas of mixed berry fruit, dried cranberry, and mineral. The fruit is gradually turning leaner with time, evolving into secondary characteristics of tobacco leaf, dried pine needles, and orange peel. Though more austere than in its younger days, this wine still possesses remarkable body and extract.

Castello dei Rampolla 2000 Sammarco $82.00
Castello dei Rampolla 2000 Sammarco $164.00 (1.5L)
Castello dei Rampolla 1990 Sammarco $189.00
Castello dei Rampolla 1985 Sammarco $229.00
Castello dei Rampolla 1982 Sammarco $229.00

Click for more Super Tuscan producers!

Grattamacco

Piermario Meletti Cavallari has always been an enophile. He was very content in his wine store in Bergamo but knew that he had a further calling, so he set out to find a vineyard that he could make his own. When he saw Grattamacco he knew immediately that he had found the right place, so he settled in and began producing wine. The 1982 Grattamacco was Cavallari's debut, establishing him as one of the of the pillars of the Super Tuscan movement (along with Ornellaia, Sassicaia, and Tignanello). With the help of Claudio Tipa and consultant Maurizio Castelli, this estate is now producing consistently impressive Super Tuscans that are prized by collectors, but a modest visage with no marketing keeps this star out of the limelight and very reasonably priced.

Grattamacco 2000 Rosso $75.62
This blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Sangiovese changes from vintage to vintage. In 2000, the winemaker used 65% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Merlot, and 15% Sangiovese. Deep ruby with garnet tones. Bold scents of jammy black fruit lead into a meaty, earthy palate. Warm and intense, with solid structure and a slow, graceful exit. Evocative, opulent. Drink 2005-2010.

Grattamacco 2003 Bianco $37.40
Grattamacco's use of 100% Vermentino grapes for this wine makes for a very round, medium-weight white. Critics often cite Grattamacco's Bianco as one of Bolgheri's most "authentic" whites, with the classic flavors and aromas of unmistakably Tuscan Vermentino ever present. Intense straw-yellow in color. Crisp and clean and filled with baking spices, pears, and ripe summer peaches and apricots in the mouth, floral notes on the nose (linden and lime tree). Drink now.

Click for another pillar of Bolgheri's Super Tuscan movement!

Antinori - Tignanello & Solaia

Where Sassicaia opened the door for Italian wine, Marchese Piero Antinori, with the guidance of Giacomo Tachis, kicked it down with the introduction of Tignanello in 1971, Solaia in 1978, and Guado al Tasso in 1990. The great merchant winemaker believed it was wrong to imitate a Bordeaux wine; Italy can make great wines with the noble varieties that have their own special character. That is the premise of Antinori's wines.

While it is fair to say that the past 25 years best represent the efforts of the Marchese and Antinori estate, especially in the area of Super Tuscans, it should be noted that the family legacy dates back to 1385 when his ancestors joined the Florentine Guild of Vintners. This tradition is the foundation of Piero's success and is applied in all his efforts. Twenty-six generations later, these dynamic and visionary producers of fine wines have acquired and developed estates concentrated in Toscana's finest and most progressive viticultural areas of Montalcino (Pian delle Vigne), Chianti Classico (Tignanello, Badia a Passignano, Peppoli), and Montepulciano (La Braccesca) and have expanded outside this region to Umbria (Castello della Sala), Piemonte (Prunotto), Puglia (Tormaresca), Hungary (Bataapati), Chile (Albis and Albaclara), Washington (Col Solare), and California (Atlas Peak) among many others.

Tignanello
This is the wine that rocked the world! Tenuta San Guido's Sassicaia may have ignited the revolution, but Antinori's Tignanello spread the word. Piero's goal was not to recreate a Bordeaux style claret, but to show the versatility and finesse that the noble Sangiovese can deliver; the result was the second official Super Tuscan, which featured this native varietal in the Cabernet-aided blend. It is the first Sangiovese to be aged in small oak barrels and the first modern red wine to include a non-traditional varietal. Tignanello was also among the first wines in Chianti to be made without any white grapes.

Influenced by the lead of Piero's uncle (the great Marchese Mario Incisa della Rocchetta) and guided by Giacomo Tachis, Tignanello made its grand entrance to the international stage in 1971 and has only improved since. A blend of 80% Sangiovese, 15% Cabernet Sauvignon, and 5% Cabernet Franc, this Super Tuscan is made only in good vintages from the main vineyard of the Tignanello estate. The harvest here is particularly late, and the grapes are processed very gently to avoid damage. French oak is used for malolactic fermentation and for a 14-month aging period, followed by another full year of aging in the bottle before release.

Full and fruit-forward, Tignanello is a very complex wine. With great structure, rich mouthfeel, and a long finish, it certainly merited the Tre Bicchieri awards it has won for five different vintages.

Antinori 2001 Tignanello $78.50
Antinori 1990 Tignanello $210.00
Antinori 1988 Tignanello $189.00
Antinori 1988 Tignanello $394.00 (1.5L)
Antinori 1985 Tignanello $239.00
Antinori 1985 Tignanello $449.00 (1.5L)
Antinori 1982 Tignanello $195.00

Solaia
It competes as Italy's most prestigious blend and is the flagship wine of her best known producer. The golden child of Piero Antinori and esteemed enologist Giacomo Tachis, whose magic touch has graced Italy's most elite Super Tuscans (including Sassicaia, Tignanello, Sammarco, and Argiano), the wine started in 1978 as a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc and grew in 1982 to include Sangiovese. The grapes used to make this "sunny one" are grown exclusively in the eponymous vineyard, a highly desirable 10-hectare patch of land on the Tignanello estate, which is also home to the wine of the same name. The 1978 debut was limited to its homeland, but once this life-changing wine ventured out internationally, it enchanted wine enthusiasts worldwide.

The individual varieties - 75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Sangiovese, and 5% Cabernet Franc - exhibit their unique qualities yet meld seamlessly here, allowing the character of the terroir to shine through. A fruit-forward wine with impressive structure and balance, Solaia is supported by velvety tannins and stretches into a long finish.

Antinori 2001 Solaia $164.91
Antinori 2000 Solaia $789.00 (3.0L)
Antinori 1990 Solaia $389.00
Antinori 1988 Solaia $269.00
Antinori 1982 Solaia $329.00

Click for Piero's brother Lodovico of Ornellaia!

Antinori - Guado al Tasso

As with Angelo Gaja's Ca' Marcanda effort in the mid-nineties, it was only a matter of time before this legendary producer found a home for a red blend on the pioneering soil of Bolgheri. He is in good company here with both his uncle's legendary Tenuta San Guido estate and Tenuta dell'Ornellaia, which his brother founded and which is still pouring out the most sought-after Merlot (Masseto) in all of Italy. Success clearly flows in this man's blood, and the soils of Bolgheri are a natural breeding ground for Antinori success.

The Guado al Tasso estate, or "Badger’s Ford" - the name refers to a common sight in the region - is located in the Bolgheri zone, where the estate was once known as Tenuta Belvedere. The family estate goes back to the Antinoris of the early thirties, but it wasn't until the 1990 debut release of Guado al Tasso that it became a center of activity. This blend is dominated by Cabernet Sauvignon and rounded out by 30% Merlot and now 10% Syrah, resulting in a rich color and a delightful balance of structure and softness on the palate.

A ruby glints in the glass. Dark cherries with deep undertones of charred coffee and dark chocolate. Velvety tannins support eloquent structure and complexity, leading into a long finish. Well worthy of its Tre Bicchieri awards for the 2000 and 2001 as well as the high rating from Robert Parker for the 1999 release.

Antinori 1999 Guado al Tasso $98.90

Click for Gaja's take on Bolgheri!

IWM in Miami

Miami International Wine Fair
Featuring Sergio Esposito
James L. Knight International Center
Saturday, October 1, 2005
2:00-7:00pm

Florida’s largest wine trade show will return for its fourth annual edition to the James L. Knight Center in Downtown Miami during the first weekend of October. This comprehensive program of sit-down tastings, wine dinners, and a Grand Tasting attracted over 4,000 visitors last year and included nearly 400 wineries from 19 countries. IWM’s own Sergio Esposito will present a Revival of Classical Italian Wines tasting (Oct. 1, 5-6pm), which will include wines from Bea, Mascarello, and Quintarelli as well as the obscure sweet wine from 1959, Solaria Jonica. Be sure to stop by the IWM table at the Grand Tasting!

Visit the Miami Wine Fair website and click on "seminars" for more on Sergio's Revival of Classical Italian Wines tasting!