Tenuta di Arceno Valadorna 2015 - 1.5 Litre Bottle

This Merlot-led blend is sourced primarily from the Valadorna and Capraia blocks, which produce the estate’s most complex and mineral-based expressions of this variety. The blocks are located within the cooler part of the estate, naturally irrigated by the stream that undulates through it, and feature sandy brown soils and lower yields than typical. These blocks are often the last Merlot blocks to ripen at the estate.

Blend: 65% Merlot, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon 11% Cabernet Franc, 5% Petit Verdot

95 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate     The 2015 Valadorna (65% Merlot, 11% Cabernet Franc, 19% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot) is a dark and thickly endowed red wine that boasts a rich and lasting grip on the palate. The bouquet offers depth and complexity with dark fruit, leather, cured tobacco and spice. There are also softer notes of chocolate and ground espresso beans. The wine's seamless integration of flavors leads to increased momentum and intensity as the wine continues to open in the glass. Rating: 95+

93 Points - Wine Spectator     This rich, powerful red, packed with blackberry and blueberry fruit, is beginning to mellow, offering a woodsy panoply of mushroom, humus and autumn leaves in the background. There are still some tannins to resolve. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Drink now through 2032.

92 Points - James Suckling     Big and rich wine with lots of fruit and tannins. Plenty of wood, too. Full body. Needs two or three years to soften. Try after 2021.