Antinori Villa Toscana Rossa

Description

ClimateThe 2011 vintage was characterized by an early bud-burst, flowering, and bud set. The rain which fell during a few days of the flowering slightly limited the subsequent bud set. Temperatures, which previously had been on the cool side, began to rise after the second week of July and, from early August until early October, high temperatures and a total absence of rainfall led to a harvest well in advance of the normal schedule, one which began at the end of August with the Merlot and Syrah. Picking of the Cabernet and Sangiovese, instead, began in mid-September and was completed by the end of the month.VinificationThe harvested grapes were destemmed and softly pressed and the must then sent to temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. The fermentation itself began the day after pressing and lasted from five to seven days; skin contact, instead, lasted eight to twelve days. The fermentation temperatures of the Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese were limited to a maximum of 82 Fahrenheit 28 centigrade in order to better extract color and soft tannins, while the fermentation temperatures of the Merlot and Syrah were kept to a maximum of 77 Fahrenheit 25 centigrade to better conserve aroma and fragrance. The wine was put through a complete malolactic fermentation in October and November and then went into French, Hungarian, and American oak barrels, where it was aged for twelve months. In the final phase, the wine was bottled and given an additional eight months of bottle aging before commercial release.Historical dataVilla Rosso was first produced in 1928 by Marquis Niccolo Antinori, father of Piero Antinori, as the first Chianti intended to age and improve over time. In 2001, Piero Antinori began a new phase for the wine, transforming it into a Toscana IGT Typical Geographical Indication produced exclusively from the grapes of the firms proprietary vineyards in Tuscany. The design of the label has remained virtually unchanged ever since 1928, with only minor and insignificant modifications, first in 1990 and then with the 2001 vintage.Tasting notesAn intense ruby red in color, the aromas are equally intense and complex with notes of ripe plums, sweet spices, and dried fruit. On the palate, the 2001 Villa Rosso shows a firm body, supple and velvety in its tannins, long on the flow, and savory on the finish and aftertaste. – Antinori