Tenuta Tignanello - Marchese Antinori - Chianti Classico Riserva 1988
Marchesi Antinori is located in Tuscany and is one of the largest and most important producers in Italy . The Antinori family has been committed to the art of winemaking since 1385, when Giovanni di Piero Antinori became a member of the Arte Fiorentina dei Vinattieri (The Brotherhood of Florentine Winegrowers). In 1900 Antinori added the Tignanello vineyard to his portfolio, and Niccolò Antinori and his son Piero began experimenting with winemaking techniques and grape varieties then unheard of. The family now owns several vineyards in Italy and in the rest of the world (Napa Valley, Chile, Romania, etc.).
The Tenuta Tignanello estate lies in the heart of Chianti Classico , in the hills between the Greve and Pesa river valleys. It extends over an area of 319 hectares, of which approximately 130 hectares are devoted to vines and divided into small individual plots. Two of the estate's most prized vineyards are found on the same hillside, Tignanello and Solaia , on soils derived from marine marls rich in limestone and shale. The first vintage of Tignanello was released in 1971. Tignanello is the most famous of all Antinori wines and the first barrel-aged Sangiovese , the first contemporary red wine blended with non-traditional grape varieties (especially Cabernet) and the one of the first red wines from the Chianti Classico region not to use white grapes.
Tignanello 1988 is produced with a selection of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc . The grapes were macerated for 14 days. The aging lasted 20 months in 225-litre oak barrels , then 20 months in the bottle . The 1988 vintage in Tuscany was excellent. The growing season kicked off with a prolonged winter and a slow start to spring. Wet weather delayed and disrupted both bud break and flowering, which naturally reduced yields. However, summer eventually brought dry, mild conditions that lasted from mid-summer through October harvest, pushing the grapes to full phenolic maturity.
Grapes: Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc
