A couple I married this summer (actually my wife’s cousin and her partner), went to Italy on their honeymoon. They are getting into wine (they just visited and I opened some old French bordeaux one night, and some old Italians the second), and one of them loved a Tignanello they had on their trip. The other one would like to get a bottle for them to share next year on their first anniversary – next June.
So…any recommendations for a vintage on the market that will be good drinking next summer. And of course any recommendations on where to find it would be appreciated. On winesearcher it looks like one can get almost any vintage back to 1982 for around 170.
And of course if anyone here has some and wants to sell…
I just opened my last 2004 of three bottles and it was the very best Tig I’ve had. I would imagine that it’s easy to find and a wine that’s in a great spot at 15-16 years.
Yes, this is a great one. Some here may think it should be held longer because '04 was such a solid year in Tuscany, but my view is that this wine is in a perfect place right now, and that going back to '97 is a lot more risky (i.e. it might be great, but it also may be disappointing). I really like the '04, it’s one of the best…after that I would go for '07.
Folks who like Super Tuscans really owe it to themselves to give Argentiera a try.
I don’t know how well the style will age [I don’t remember encountering a particularly strong tannin structure when I tasted it], but it terms of “Drink Now!” reds, I’d be shocked if there were a better red wine at the Argentiera price point.
Stylistically, it felt to me like what Cathy Corison would make if she were working in Tuscany.
The ‘97 was great, but agree with others that it’s risky now and that 2004 Tignanello is a great bet. I’ve never had the 2007 but I prefer 2004 vintage generally for super Tuscans.
Good luck,
Peter
Although young, my impression of the 2016 Tignanello is that it is (possibly) the best ever. Below is my CT note. I gave the wine a score of 98 points, and I am quite stingy.
A true tour de force, Antinori’s 2016 version of Tignanello is perhaps its best ever. An opaque ruby blend of 80% Sangiovese, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon and 7% Cabernet Franc, it is loaded with dark bramble fruits, cassis, baking spices, Provençal herbs, espresso and tobacco. Full-bodied, fresh, seamlessly alcoholic (14%) and with gorgeous purity of fruit, it wraps its flavors with substantial fine-grained tannins and a judicious amount of spicy oak. Dense on the mid-palate, it proceeds to a very long, mineral-laden finish. As good as this is now, it will benefit from a few years in the cellar. Thereafter, look forward to more than two decades of enjoyment. Drink 2023-2046.
I love Tignanello: It’s the perfect metaphor for Tuscany. My all-time favorite vintage is the most recent, the outstanding 2016. Older favorites are 2013 and 2007, with a special mention to 2010. I tasted the 1997 at the winery back in 2015 and it was gorgeous too. It was my favorite of the older vintages in a retrospective I did back then.
A big chunk of the Tignanello vineyards were replanted in the early 1990s, so even the 1997 fruit comes from young vines. For that reason, the 1997 sticks out as great until you get to 2007. From 2007 forward, Tignanello starts a whole new chapter with more pronounced complexity, depth and longevity.