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Contrada Guardiola 2018 75cl

IGT | Terre Siciliane | Sicily | Italy
CHF 50.80
Critics scores
92 Robert Parker
A release of 3,860 bottles, the Passopisciaro Vini Franchetti 2018 Contrada G draws its Nerello Mascalese from the Guardiola vineyard, located in the village of Castiglione di Sicilia, with vines at 800 meters in elevation. This site is walled off by a much newer lava flow that formed in 1947, but it stopped before damaging the ancient vines. The wine is lean and streamlined with a mild and pretty bouquet focused on wild berry, rose potpourri, ash and hints of tarry spice and smoke. Some dustings of white pepper also appear. Its polished tannins are fully integrated into the wine's light texture. You might enjoy it with a Sicilian minestra with lentils.
92 Vinous
The 2018 Contrada Guardiola, or simply “G,” seduces with a perfumed display of fresh roses, violets and geraniums; notes of dried strawberries and hints of smoke emerge in the glass. It’s like pure silk on the palate, matched by a vivid display of cherries and purple-tinged inner florals, while slowly gaining a more tactile feel through a blend of minerals and round tannins that settle in toward the close. This is so pretty and graceful in feel, yet with a saturating concentration of tarry fruit which, combined with the underlying structure, will promise years of development. In fact, it was only six hours after opening that the 2018 began to show more of a giving nature. Rest this for a few years in the cellar to unleash its inner beauty.
Producer
Tenuta di Trinoro & Passopisciaro
Found in the most remote corners of the region, where Tuscany meets Umbria and Lazio, there lies Tenuta di Trinoro. Andrea Franchetti established the estate upon this virgin wine territory of Sarteano in 1992. Today, Franchetti remains one of the most extreme winemakers in Italy, continuing to push traditional French viticulture models. He planted Bordeaux varieties at altitudes up to 500-700 meters, at super high densities, and then picks them as late as possible, even in November. He goes on to vinify every little parcel individually so he can meticulously monitor each one’s development, selecting only the best for the Tenuta di Trinoro cuvée. Clearly, the terroir is particular, given not only its lavishness but also the originality that it brings to the wines. Low-yields also enhance the wine’s structured black fruit and wild herb essences. As much as we admire Franchetti’s Tenuta di Trinoro – based on Cabernet Franc with small amounts of Cabernet Sauvignon and Petit Verdot – his second label, Le Cupole, offers a quality-price ratio that is too good to believe.