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Tuscan Wines

The Tuscan Wine Region is considered one of the most important in all of Italy. It’s here that Sangiovese flourishes, producing a variety of distinct and influential wines, according to our Tuscan Wine Guide. The Chianti area exports more wine than any other in Italy, and wines labeled with DOCG must contain at least 80% Sangiovese. Wines from the Chianti Classico, Ruffina and Colli Senesi DOCGs will typically spend more time in oak and in turn be more complex. Brunello, a clone of the Sangiovese grape, is only grown in the Montalcino area and requires a minimum five years of aging to be classified as Brunello di Montalcino. Rosso di Montalcino is also made from Sangiovese, but only requires a year of aging, resulting in more approachable wines. A handful of visionary winemakers that chose not to follow the DOCG regulations realized that grape varieties, such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah, excelled on the coastal plain of Toscana. This is where the Super Tuscan wines were born and have thrived over the past several decades. In recent vintages, the wines from Bolgheri, Maremma, Montecucco and Morellino di Scansano have received some of the highest accolades in our Tuscan Wine Ratings.

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100
points

Avignonesi 1995 Occhio di Pernice Prugnolo Gentile (Vin Santo di Montepulciano)

  • Cellar Selection
  • Online Exclusive
  1. $210
Thick as molasses and dark as caramelized brown sugar, the wine oozes out of the bottle releasing concentrated aromas of butterscotch, toffee, honey, licorice, coffee, resin and maple syrup. Grapes from the Montepulciano area are dried in a ventilated room and the wine ages over 10 years in tiny oak barrels resulting in thick, dark concentration. Don’t pair it with…  — M.L.  (3/1/2008)
100
points

Tenuta dell'Ornellaia 2007 Masseto Merlot (Toscana)

  • Cellar Selection
  1. $460
A perfect wine from a classic vintage, the 2007 Masseto (100% Merlot from a 17-acre vineyard of the same name) opens with an unabashedly opulent bouquet of delicious blackberry, cherry, chocolate, vanilla, exotic spice and cinnamon. Masseto excels both in terms of quality of fruit and winemaking and delivers plush, velvety tannins and an extra long, supple finish…  — M.L.  (12/15/2010)
99
points

Le Macchiole 2007 Messorio Merlot (Toscana)

  • Cellar Selection
  1. $320
Here’s a “wow” wine you won’t easily forget. Messorio is all Merlot, and happily delivers the softness, richness and overall opulence that we love in this noble grape variety. What elevates this particular expression and vintage is the true elegance and sophistication evident here. This is a huge wine, but it’s not exaggerated and the finish is as long and smooth…  — M.L.  (12/15/2010)
99
points

Tenuta dell'Ornellaia 2004 Masseto Merlot (Toscana)

  • Cellar Selection
  1. $250
Even better than the highly acclaimed 2001 vintage, this Merlot from a tiny, clay soil vineyard in Bolgheri is just about everything you’ve ever dreamed of tasting. Gorgeous, generous, voluptuous, cheerful, succulent and intense: Masseto is all those things. The aromas are seamless and capture the essence of chocolate fudge, sweet cherry, blackberry, spice and…  — M.L.  (4/1/2008)
99
points

Avignonesi 1997 Occhio di Pernice Prugnolo Gentile (Vin Santo di Montepulciano)

  • Cellar Selection
  1. $237
This sweet wine from Italy is guaranteed to blow your socks off. Its thickness and density resembles concentrated maple syrup or molasses. It is made with Prugnolo Gentile (Sangiovese) grapes that are air-dried and then aged in small wood containers for many careful years. The gorgeous aromas include roasted chestnuts, brown sugar, prunes and sweet figs and you can…  — M.L.  (7/1/2010)
99
points

Tenuta dell'Ornellaia 2007 Ornellaia Red (Bolgheri Superiore)

  • Cellar Selection
  1. $200
Top 100 Cellar Selections 2011
The 2007 Ornellaia is a masterpiece blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and a tiny element of Petit Verdot. The intensity and purity are outstanding and the wine delivers beautiful notes of chocolate, black cherry, leather, cedar and spice. It’s a big, modern expression that closes long with luscious softness and opulent fruit. Hold 10 years or more.  — M.L.  (12/15/2010)
98
points

Fattoria Petrolo 2007 Galatrona Merlot (Toscana)

  • Cellar Selection
  1. $135
Top 100 Cellar Selections 2011
Galatrona is an opulent, gorgeous wine (from the excellent 2007) vintage that shows the very best of Merlot in Italy. Thanks to a unique growing climate located between Florence, Siena and Arezzo, as well as extremely low vineyard yields, the wine feels soft and velvety and imparts long-lasting flavors of black cherry, lively spice, tobacco and cigar box. The true…  — M.L.  (12/15/2010)
98
points

Valdicava 2006 Madonna del Piano Riserva Sangiovese Grosso (Brunello di Montalcino)

  • Cellar Selection
  • Online Exclusive
  1. $275
This beautiful riserva shows enormous thickness and blackness, like midnight of a new moon. The wine delivers impenetrable density, extraction, black fruit, spice, berry preserves, licorice, asphalt, ground black pepper, cherry liqueur and crème de cassis. There are seemingly no limits to the intensity and complexity here. The mouthfeel is dense, plush, firmly…  — M.L.  (5/1/2012)
Showing items 1 through 8 of 4,618
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