While the Villa Antinori Toscana is something I recommend CONSTANTLY to supermarket shoppers unsure of value and quality–or even their own palate–these Chianti versions are almost double the price and contain a lot more *old-world* nuances, which a lot of newbs aren’t keen on. Here we have a clean, focused wine lacking good chunks of that, but def not California either.

Mercurochrome garnet in the glass, a nose green and pithy, riven with deep, beautiful dense cherry, gorgeous oak and *just enough* tertiary to hint at age. Shockingly not that much though. This thing is bright and tight and headed a perfect direction here going into its pre-teens. Who woulda thought a 30-dollar drug-store top-shelfer could do this??? Black tar and tobacco create a rigid backdrop of worn savory for amazing fruit to play against, but there’s a green piquantness in the bouquet, a briary vegetal I am equally shocked at. Tempted to decant, but not gonna because NO ONE who buys this will.

Stupidly gorgeous in the mouth. Dry and raspy, all that green tautness stretched across the entry like those see-through tights they banned. The fruit is carefully massive: a bitter melange of berry and cherry and more tar and tobacco containing bitter grip. It’s a chalky wonder, rife with acid and seething with tannin. Is there enough fruit to see a few more years? I honestly think so. It’s SOOOO ripe and delicious, but with funky Chianti goodness woven perfectly in amongst. Is this wine structured for a California palate? Probably. Does it show classic Chianti nuances? Considerably. Is it a total modern sell-out? Positively no.

2011 VILLA ANTINORI ‘Classico Riserva’ Sangio/ME/SY Chianti DOCG Italy 14.0

www.antinori.it/en/tenuta/estates-antinori/antinori-nel-chianti-classico-estate/