Posted from CellarTracker
Cool. One of the few Italian wines I have in my cellar. Love this wine. I did a vertical once of this going back to '83 and they were still kicking all the way back with structure to go a bit more. The '85 was stunning.
I have never had one that seems ready yet. This 1997 was getting to an interesting place but still very young. And a much more youthful 1999 Cepparello blew it off the table the same night. But clearly the Rancia has the brighter future…
Still quite a bit of tannin and structure to it almost 12 years out from vintage. A little shop near me has a decent stock of this wine. I’ve gone through my small stock, but have thought about picking up some more. You’re tempting me.
At the same vertical we also did Fontalloro back to '85 and they showed better younger, even though I did not like the style.
Thanks for the note as I have enjoyed this wine tremendously in the past, though its been a while since I have tried one. It really seemed to be veering in almost Left Bank direction (cedar, cassis etc) but always a Chianti Classico.
I have two of these left, it would seem no real rush, and perhaps even further development could be expected on this 1997?
I’ve drunk and own a lot of Rancia, I like it quite a bit. I think as it pushes up to $40 I would rather drink Il Poggione, Conti Costanti, Ciacci Pianrosso, but a really great wine no doubt.
I have a bit of Fontalloro, maybe like 2-3 bottles each 99 and 01, but haven’t drunk one – what is the stylistic difference, I assumed it would just be more forward, but not necessarily “modern” but would love more info…
In terms of current releases, the 2005 Rancia has been quite nice – not in the league of the 2004, but a somewhat loosely-knit wine that is accessible much younger than you would normally expect. I liked it.