Guado al Tasso Bolgheri Rosso Superiore DOC - Marchesi Antinori - 2020

75 cl

Robert Parker: 96 points

Alcohol content: 14.5% vol.

Grape varieties: 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 22% Cabernet Franc, 18% Merlot

Vinification:

The hand-picked grapes are carefully selected and pressed separately as soon as they arrive at the winery. After gentle destemming and crushing of the grapes, the mash ferments in steel tanks. After fermentation, the young wines are matured for one year in new French barriques. This is followed by the blending of the best batches and a further six months of ageing in barriques.

Tasting note:

The Marchesi Antinori 2020 Bolgheri Superiore Guado al Tasso has a share of over 30 % Cabernet Franc in this vintage, with Cabernet Sauvignon and 15 to 20 % Merlot making up the rest. Matarocchio was not produced this year, so this wine benefits from the additional Cabernet Franc. The 2019 and 2021 vintages of Guado al Tasso are very concentrated and rich, while the 2020 has a leaner texture, similar to the 2010 vintage we saw. There was rain in September. Managing director Renzo Cotarella says he would not describe 2020 as a hot vintage, as the rain at the end of the growing season was a challenge.

In Bolgheri on the Tuscan coast, bud break is earlier than in other appellations and the growing season is correspondingly longer. This benefits the international grape varieties used here. The wine shows a beautiful fullness and intensity. The Cabernet Franc is clearly noticeable and gives it the characteristic vertical structure and linearity for which this grape variety is known. You get black fruits, spices, white pepper and no sign of bitter stems or blackberries. Sweet, almost milky tannins are interwoven with fresh acidity, giving this wine good ageing potential. The use of new oak has been scaled back somewhat in this vintage.

Tenuta Guado al Tasso:

Tenuta Guado al Tasso is located in the small, prestigious DOC Bolgheri on the coast of northern Maremma, about 100 kilometres south-west of Florence. This denomination has a relatively short history (founded in 1995), but enjoys international renown as a new point of reference in the global oenological panorama. The Tenuta Guado al Tasso comprises a total of around 320 hectares of vineyards in a charming plain surrounded by hills, known as the "Bolgheri amphitheatre" due to its special formation.

The approximately 320 hectares of vineyards, situated at an altitude of around 50 metres, are predominantly planted with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Cabernet Franc, Petit Verdot and Vermentino, the latter being cultivated in both the white-skinned and red-skinned varieties.

The climate is mild thanks to the nearby sea: constant breezes soften the summer heat and the harshness of winter and ensure clear skies so that the sunshine is high. The clay-sand to clay-silt soils of alluvial origin with bolgherese agglomerate (skeleton) give the vines personality and character thanks to their strong territorial identity.