Tenuta dell’Ornellaia / Ornellaia – Toscana Rosso IGT Masseto 2012
€960.00
| YEAR | 2012 |
|---|---|
| Producer | Tenuta dell'Ornellaia / Ornellaia |
| APPELLATION | Toscana Rosso IGT |
| Grape variety | |
| COUNTRY | Italy |
| REGION | Tuscany |
| Format | 0,75 lt |
| ALCOHOL CONTENT | 14.50% |
| Drinking Window | |
| Green | Sustainable |
Tenuta dell’Ornellaia, now simply Ornellaia, is one of the icons of Bolgheri DOC and of Super Tuscans: wines produced in the style of the Bordeaux “blends”.
The estate was founded by a member of the Antinori family, the Marquis Lodovico Antinori, at the beginning of the 1980s, with the first harvest in 1985, just next to Tenuta San Guido, producer of the other gem of the appellation, Sassicaia, and next to the property of his own brother, Solaia.
Ornellaia soon established itself as a point of reference for the wines of the region and for Italian wine in general. In 1999 it attracted the attention of Robert Mondavi, who bought a small share, and then up to the 50%. The Frescobaldi family, an ancient and noble Florentine family, influential and powerful since the Middle Age, acquired the remaining 50% and, shortly afterwards, in 2005, redeemed the entire estate from Constellation Brands (which in the meantime had acquired Mondavi), becoming, as for today, the only owner of what is one of the most important and valuable wineries in the Country, with the production of two of the most expensive wines in Italy: Ornellaia and Masseto.
Aalmost 100 hectares of property, distributed in Ornellaia and Bellaria, in addition to the Merlot vineyards (7 hectares) in Masseto, which give the name to this wine.
Masseto, as shown by the name (“massi” means hard stones), grows on “extreme” lands, as defined by the oenologist of Ornellaia and director of Masseto Axel Heinz, certainly not what is usually expected for the Merlot. The vines are always under difficult struggles, but these extreme conditions are the secret of the tension and power of this legend of a wine. The vineyards are located on the Tyrrhenian coast of Tuscany, flooded by the light of the sea and cooled by the breeze, Sea water is one of the ingredients of this wine, whose roots dig the earth of “blue clays”, marine deposits rich in fossils and shells: rock and clay blended together, enriched by the influence of marine waters give birth to this unique place.
Complex, intense, enveloping. The notes of cherry and black currant combine with violets and minerality. On the palate it is spicy, dark but extremely precise, with a long and enveloping finish.
16-18 °C
Suggestion to open it about 1 to 2 hours before serving it. And let it breath in the glass as well.
Sustainable agriculture, limited intervention.
Separate vinification of the various parcels. Fermentation and maceration in stainless-steel. Malolactic fermentation in barriques (100% new), blending after 12 months and then a further 12 months in barriques. Bottling and further 12 months of rest before release.
