Italian Reds
Ornellaia Le Volte dell’Ornellaia 2021 IGT Toscana Italy
One of the pioneers of the Super Tuscan revolution, Tenuta Ornellaia is situated in Bolgheri in Tuscany’s Costa degli Etruschi. Their first wine, simply called Ornellaia, is one of the true icons of the Italian scene. Produced from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot, it’s a classic Bordeaux blend speaking with an elegant Italian or rather Tuscan accent. It’s a ravishing, world-class wine that attracts premium prices.
Luckily for us mere mortals, their clever winemakers also produce a number of less rarefied wines released under the banner of IGT Toscana. You could call Le Volte dell’Ornellaia their third or entry-level red with some justification – it’s certainly more affordable – but that phrase doesn’t do justice to the quality of the wine in bottle. The way that the producers themselves phrase it is that this wine “opens the way” to their wider stable of thorough-bred wines. And that’s rather a nice way of putting it. Either way, it’s an accessible and hugely enjoyable wine that displays extraordinarily confident winemaking.
A bottle of Le Volte – complete with a taste of how the other half lives – can be yours for tens rather than hundreds of pounds (it usually retails around the £25–£30 mark). It’s made, predominantly, from Merlot with Cabernet Sauvignon and the varietal that dominates Tuscany, Sangiovese. Each is fermented separately in stainless steel and then carefully blended together and aged in a mixture of oak and cement tanks.
The result is on the darker side of medium, a clear, lambent ruby in the glass. On the nose, there are pronounced aromas of ripe red and black fruits, a cornucopia of brambly delights: blackberry, cherry and plum but also raspberry and the piquancy of red and black currants. Behind this lies a little bouquet garni and white-pepper.
Oak provides notes of smoke and charred wood that gather all that fruit together with a little leather, mushroom and tobacco. The berry fruits work with the earthy notes perfectly becoming an even more integrated whole as the wine opens up in glass. Finally, perfumed top notes appear when least expected: a dusty rose garden in the Tuscan heat.
The palate is a tad more restrained but the pronounced flavours of berries and earthiness remain along with a slight and pleasant clove-like quality. The wine is dry and toothsome but not drying – tannins are certainly present but sufficiently tamed to add interest not aggression. It’s medium-bodied and the weight is lighter that its blockbuster palate might suggest with surprisingly pert acidity outlining everything delightfully.
Cabernet Sauvignon makes it presence known but doesn’t dominate – overall the two Bordeaux varietals do a lovely job of softening the harder edges of Sangiovese (the whole idea behind Super Tuscans). The finish is long, resolving into a fruity loam. I had to search for seasoning in the mid palate – it is there if a little hidden. Even at 14% abv it is very drinkable on its own but would also do well with pork which, especially if it came in the form of porchetta or wild boar sausages, might draw a standing ovation.
Isole e Olena Chianti Classico 2019 Italy
The stunning Isole e Olena Estate lies high in the Chianti Classico hills almost equidistant from Florence in the north and Siena to the south. Its elevation (between 350–490 m asl according to the Consorzio Vino Chianti Classico) ensures cool nights which aid long, slow ripening and consequently concentration of flavour whilst maintaining acidity in the grapes. The estate was owned and run by the De Marchi Family who, starting in the mid-50s, oversaw a significant rise in quality of the wines. It is now part of the EPI group’s portfolio along with famous fellow Tuscans Biondi-Santi (and other quality wine brands such as Piper-Heidsieck and Charles Heidsieck Champagnes).
The terms of the Chianti Classico DOCG stipulate a minimum of 80% Sangiovese so final blends can feature a range of other local and international varieties. Canaiolo and Syrah are used here, the former being a central Italian grape of some historical note and the later needing no further introduction other than to recall its use in some Super Tuscan wines (cf. my Syrah in Focus Pt 2 for Falstaff). Interestingly, not all Super Tuscans are blends, however. Isole e Olena’s own Cepparello, one of the most famous, is 100% Sangiovese.
This slightly humbler Chianti Classico is a typical medium ruby colour with a subtly lighter garnet rim. The nose starts with higher floral notes – rose and violet – that add welcome fragrance to the predominant red fruit and herbal savouriness. The fruit is well drawn and ripe: intense cherry and tarter redcurrant heading off into deeper black plum and bramble territory. There are herbs, a dried bouquet garni that pairs well with the slightly dusty profile of Sangiovese, together with hints of liquorice root. And the ghost of spice too, of the sweeter, earthier garam-masala/incense type.
Beneath this seasoned fruit lies a very cleverly structured and integrated framework of acidity, tannin and oak. The acidity is high, acting to outline the aromas and flavours on show and counterbalance the savoury, umami drag in the glass. This is a full-bodied wine, weightier certainly than Pizzin's Aussie Sangiovese below, with beautifully controlled tannins lending a certain dryness that marries well with wine's juicy fruit.
If there is new oak at work, it is very restrained indeed (I suspect the vast majority is old oak but I couldn’t verify it). Bottle ageing adds some light forest-floor elements that match the oak-derived cedar and slight charred-wood tones. The finish is long and continues the seamless mix of fruit, age and oak.
There’s sufficient acid, concentration of fruit and seasoning here to stand up to the wonderful tomato dishes of the area – Siena’s Pici all’Aglione (thick pasta noodles with garlic and tomato sauce) would be a good place to start. The wine would absolutely sing with the charred caramelisation of a simple Bistecca alla Fiorentina served with a dish of wild Italian greens and garlic. It would perk up the earthiness of a local Ribolita nicely too.
