Marchesi Antinori - Guado al Tasso Bolgheri Superiore, 2015
Marchesi Antinori is among the 10 oldest family-run businesses in the world. Giovanni di Piero Antinori joined the Guild of Winemakers in 1385, and this year is hailed as the start of their wine venture.
In the following centuries, the Antinori family became one of the richest families in Tuscany, entertaining the highest echelons of society. Their influence on the political and viticultural scene was indisputable. In the 1970s, Piero Antinori released wine gems such as Tignanello and Solaia which revolutionised the Tuscan wine scene.
Guado al Tasso Bolgheri Superiore is a Super Tuscan that was first released in 1990. Its grapes are sourced from Tenuta Guado al Tasso, a 320 hectares estate in Bolgheri close to the Tyrrhenian Sea. The wine is a blend of cabernet sauvignon, cabernet franc, merlot and (in some vintages) petit verdot. Antinori’s red winemaking process shows their expertise and attention to detail. Each grape variety (and vineyard plot) is vinified separately and macerated in stainless steel tanks for 12 to 14 days. The wine is then aged in new French oak barriques for 14 months.
In the glass, the wine has a ruby colour of medium intensity. On the nose, the aromas immediately open up with a pronounced concentration. From the first whiff, it’s deep, focused and exhibiting huge class. Notes of perfectly ripe blackberry and black plums pervade the attack, along with hints of prunes, bitter cocoa, toast, black espresso coffee. A nuanced stalky note intercedes, revealing traces of mint, blackcurrant leaves, tobacco and earth. Intensely complex and refined, the wine’s components are seamlessly integrated.
On the palate, Guado al Tasso is full, rich in body, yet somehow slender and dynamic. A confident power intertwined with an unmatched finesse. The high and precise acidity chisels the rich and complex aromatic profile. In the attack, crunchy and ripe black fruit notes dance with bitter notes of cocoa powder, mocha and tobacco. A lovely mixture of earth, green pepper, tobacco and red brick minerality sits in the background. The tannins are high in level, fine-grained, dry but elegant, with a class that seems to last forever on your tastebuds. Suave and smoky with a long toasty finish.
Guado al Tasso is a Bordeaux-blend that doesn’t forget its Tuscan soul. Its exhilarating sense of harmony, class and magnificence will haunt you for days after your first encounter. Very approachable at this young age, this wine will turn into a true masterpiece after a few years of ageing. Unmissable!