2021 Masseto

Concentrated grapes in a hot vintage means expect this to be a rich, concentrated Masseto, exuberant with luxurious tannins. Beautiful depth on the aromatics from the first moment, with rich fruit flavours that flood the palate, tons of liquorice, olive pit, chocolate shavings, cocoa bean, rosemary, freshly cut herbs, underbrush, opulent and powerful, flash of heat that subsides after a moment but is evident on the opening. Eleonora Marconi winemaker, Marchesi Frescobaldi owners. 11ha vineyard, 24 months ageing in barrel then 12 months in bottle before release, 100% new oak. Back to 100% Merlot in this vintage.
95/100 Jane Anson

Masseto 2021 (Toscana IGT; 100% Merlot; tasted with Marco Balsimelli at the property in June 2024; 15.5% alcohol). Incredible. Such lift and purity, integration and harmony. Black raspberry, mulberry perhaps. A touch of toasted brioche. A lovely natural sweetness. A delicacy and a subtly that I don’t quite find with Massetino. Hyacinth bulb. Cedar released in the mouth when one draws in some air – so beautifully and enticingly. Black pen ink and more and more cedar with gentle aeration. Creamy. Parfumier’s essences of petals – with rather more lilac, lily and hyacinth than rose. Graphite. Wonderful texture. So soft and caressing, like a million layers (milles feuilles plus!) of silk but actually with a deeper and richer texture – so, more cashmere perhaps than silk. Vibrant, fluid, dynamic, floaty and rippling in its sapidity. Radiant in its incredible dynamism and energy. Very special. Endless on the finish – if there is one! The very slight suggestion of alcohol on the finish keeps this from attaining perfection.
99/100 Colin Hay; The Drinks Business