2021 Marchese Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva

Impressive cherry and berry fruit with hints of cedar and dried flowers. It’s medium-bodied, firm and bright with a long, nicely tannined finish. This can age, but I like the tension and drive to this now. Baby Tignanello. Sangiovese with 10% cabernet. Drink or hold. (08/2024)

This is one of the big surprises of this tasting and ultimately represents one of the best buys in the entire extended Marchesi Antinori portfolio. The 2021 Chianti Classico Riserva Tenuta Tignanello Marchese Antinori shares the DNA of Tignanello. It is Sangiovese kissed with small parts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. Of course, the wine is more accessible and open compared to Tignanello, and spiritually, this wine is a Chianti Classico. By that I mean that the elegant minerality of these soils and the sunny flavors of its environs are the determining characteristics. You get wildflower, iris, tart fruit and plum. The wine's enhanced mineral character, with dusty white rock, is what adds lasting complexity and depth.

- Monica Larner (03/2024)