Le Macchiole Messorio 2020

Le Macchiole, a benchmark estate in coastal Bolgheri, makes Messorio as a pure Merlot, sourced from two organically farmed plots named Puntone and Vignone, the first planted in 1994. Bolgheri's warm maritime climate and free-draining gravel and clay soils ripen Merlot to a deep, plush concentration, while sea breezes and cooler nights keep the fruit defined. The result is a rich, fruit-driven wine of 14.5 percent. After fermentation it ages eighteen months in oak barrels, where extended contact and gradual oxygen exchange build a velvety texture, integrate the tannin and layer in spice, vanilla and cocoa. The colour is dense, almost opaque ruby. The nose is intense and ripe, with plum, black cherry and dark chocolate over tobacco and sweet oak spice. The palate is full and rich, with rounded, fine-grained tannin, a core of dark fruit and a long, warming finish carrying cocoa and toasted oak. This is a wine that rewards bottle age. Serve at 17 to 18 degrees and decant an hour ahead. Match it with rich red meat and game.