MARCHESI ANTINORI - Tignanello Chianti Classico Riserva 2017
Marchesi Antinori is located in Tuscany and is one of the largest and most important producers in Italy. The Antinori family has been involved in the art of winemaking since 1385, when Giovanni di Piero Antinori became a member of the Arte Fiorentina dei Vinattieri (The Brotherhood of Florentine Winegrowers). In 1900 Antinori added the Tignanello vineyard to his portfolio, and Niccolò Antinori and his son Piero began experimenting with previously unpublished winemaking techniques and grape varieties. The family now owns several vineyards in Italy, and in the rest of the world (Napa Valley, Chile, Romania...).
The Tenuta Tignanello estate is located in the heart of Chianti Classico, in the hills between the valleys of the Greve and Pesa rivers. It covers an area of 319 hectares, of which about 130 hectares are devoted to the vine and divided into small individual plots. Two of the estate's most prized vineyards are found on the same hillside, Tignanello and Solaia, on soils from marine marls rich in limestone and shale.
The Chianti Classico Riserva 2017 is made almost entirely with Sangiovese, and a small proportion of other varieties (Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc). Since the 2011 vintage, the Marchese Antinori has been produced from grapes exclusively from the Tignanello vineyard. They are destemmed, gently pressed and the must is transferred to stainless steel tanks, where the alcoholic fermentation takes place for about a week. The wine is left in contact with the skins and gentle pumping are carried out for intense extraction while preserving elegant and supple tannins. The wine is then blended and put in French and Hungarian oak barrels for around 12 months. The Marchese Antinori Riserva is finally aged in bottle for 12 months.
Grape varieties: Sangiovese (90%), Cabernet Sauvignon / Cabernet Franc (10%)
