Tignanello

The Antinori family has been making wine for over six hundred years, since Giovanni di Piero Antinori became part of the Arte Fiorentina dei Vinattieri in 1385. Throughout its long history, spanning 26 generations, the family has always personally managed the business making innovative, sometimes courageous choices, always with unwavering respect for tradition and the land.

Today Marchese Piero Antinori is director of the company, assisted by his three daughters, Albiera, Allegra and Alessia, who are personally involved in the business.

Antinori continually experiment with their vineyards and cellars, with selections of native and international clones, growing methods, vineyard^? altitudes, fermentation^? methods and temperatures, traditional and modern vinification^? techniques, types of wood, size and age of barrels, and various bottle-ageing periods.

85% Sangiovese
10% Cabernet Sauvignon
5% Cabernet Franc

Tignanello is made exclusively from the vineyard^? of the same name which is situated on limestone and tuffaceous soil on the Tignanello estate^? covering 47 south-west-facing hectares^? at altitudes between 350 and 400 metres a.s.l.. This was the first Sangiovese to be aged in barriques, the first modern red wine blended with non-traditional varieties like Cabernet, and one of the first red wines in Chianti not to use white grapes.

Tignanello, originally "Chianti Classico^? Riserva^? vigneto^? Tignanello" was first made from a single vineyard in the 1970 vintage^?, when it contained 20% Canaiolo and 5% Trebbiano and Malvasia and was aged in small oak^? barrels. With the 1971 vintage it became a Tuscan table wine^? and was named Tignanello. In 1975 the percentage of white grapes was definitively removed. Since 1982 the composition has remained the same. Tignanello is only made in the best vintage years, and therefore was not made in 1972, 1973,1974, 1976, 1984, 1992 and 2002.

A rainy autumn and a winter with fairly low average temperatures and some snow, resulted in later development of foliage (12-15 days) than last year. As if to compensate for this delay, favourable spring weather conditions enabled the vines to develop about 10 days earlier than average. The months of June, July and August were unusually cool with average temperatures of 24°C and plenty of rain in August. This created some problems for the ripening process and the subsequent harvest but the grapes harvested were healthy and completely ripe, up to the standard of recent vintage^? years and rich in potential.

The weather conditions during the harvest made very careful selection of the best grapes necessary, especially in the case^? of the Sangiovese. As in previous years, great care was taken during the fermentation^? and extraction phases, carrying out more frequent but less intense^? délestage and pumping over to obtain the best results for colour and tannins. For all three varieties, fermentation took placed at an average temperature of 27°, and an absolute maximum of 31°, to preserve as greatly as possible the aromas and typical features of the fruit. From the start the must^? showed great complexity^? and above all (in the case of the Sangiovese) very typical varietal^? aromas and elegance^?.

After racking^??, at the end of alcoholic fermentation^??, the wines were placed in new oak^?? barriques where malolactic fermentation^? took place by the end of the year. They were then blended and aged for 12 months in barriques, racked and then tasted, barrel^? by barrel before bottling. After another year ageing in the bottles the wine was released for sale^?.

Very intense^? ruby red colour. Nicely expressed varietal^? aromas with hints of blackberry fruit. The palate^? is weighty, dense and vibrant with complex^? structure^? and well integrated^? acidity^?. Long and lingering with hints of chocolate^?, coffee and marmalade in the aftertaste^?. Craftily handled wine and wood tannins blend^? harmoniously to make Tignanello a very complex, stylish and sophisticated wine.

14% alcohol^?, 1.4 gr/l residual^? sugar^?, 0.58 gr/l volatile^? acidity^??, 5.17 gr/l total acidity.

Venison, stewed, braised and roasted meats and seasoned cheeses.

Serving temperature: 16-18°C.

Drink this wine now or over the next eight years.

Please don't hesitate to contact us for this or any other of your wine requirements.