Wine “Solaia”, Toscana IGT, 2018, 750 ml

“Solaia” – one of the most famous wines from the Antinori companies belonging to the so-called elite “supertoskantsam” – wines from Bordeaux grape varieties grown in sunny Tuscany. Solayya – the name of the vineyard, located in the south-western part of the region, at an altitude of 350-400 meters above sea level on a rocky, limestone cliff in the Tenuta Tignanello. Antinori produced this wine for the first time in 1978, originally it consisted of 80% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc. Since 1980, the composition of the wine was introduced 20% Sangiovese, as well as any adjustments in the relationship between Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc.

Winter 2010 was characterized by heavy rainfall, low temperatures and occasional snowfall. This led to a delay in bud. Heavy rainfall were also observed during the spring. This summer it’s only the beginning of July, so that set high daytime temperatures, and has settled completely dry climate has accelerated the ripening of the grapes. In late July, the temperature dropped again, once again slowing the ripening crop. For maintenance of healthy grapes, grape growers company had decided to limit production. The harvest began in late September, under favorable weather conditions. Alternation of cool nights and warm days had a positive impact on the quality of the crop. Collection began with Cabernet Franc, then in early October collected Sangiovese, and finally, at the end of October – Cabernet Sauvignon. Due to the very long growing season grapes are of high quality and excellent varietal characteristics. Received the winery berries were desteblirovany carefully sorted and passed the soft pressing. Fermentation and maceration all three varieties were carried out on the skin, in conical oak fermenters. After separate fermentation, the grapes were separated from the skin and passed malolactic fermentation in small oak barrels. Extract each class separately held in barrels of Hungarian and French oak for 18 months. Assembling was carried out just before bottling. Due to these subtleties of production, “Solayya” has excellent balance, rich taste and aroma, as well as the ability for a long time to develop in the bottle.

Its history dates back to the company Antinori in 1385 and today it operates a representative of the 26th generation of the family – the Marquis Piero Antinori. Largely thanks to his talent and winemaker relentless pursuit of excellence, Italian wines are among the best examples of world winemaking, and the name Antinori became a symbol of innovation and quality. Today, the company owns several Antinori wine houses in various regions of Italy, as well as vineyards in Chile, California and Hungary. The company tries to keep the originality of wines specific to each area, and their main characteristics are quality and Italian elegance. Many wine Antinori through an innovative approach and a virtuoso tea blends literally revolutionized the wine on the market, and not inferior in its properties to the best examples of Bordeaux, although it compares favorably to the past for its value. The world-renowned wine expert Robert Parker said: “Antinori, no doubt, the greatest name in Italian winemaking. During the Antinori wine tasting takes place the main thing – instilled understanding of quality wines.”