Tenuta di Trinoro 2020

Tenuta di Trinoro, founded by Andrea Franchetti in the 1980s, lies in the Val d'Orcia in southern Tuscany over twenty-two hectares of varied, mainly clayey soils. This estate red is a Bordeaux blend of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, drawn from vines on clay-limestone soils at four hundred and fifty to six hundred metres. The altitude is central to the style, the cool nights at this height preserving acidity and aromatic detail in a warm Tuscan climate, while the clay-limestone base lends structure and depth. The fruit ripens fully, and at fifteen percent this is a powerful, full-bodied wine, though the elevation keeps it fresh rather than heavy. Barrel ageing settles the structure, the slow exchange of oxygen through the wood softening the firm Cabernet tannins and adding a frame of spice and cedar to the fruit. The colour is deep, dense ruby. The nose shows ripe plum and black cherry with violet, black pepper, liquorice and tobacco, and the palate is full and structured, with firm, fine-grained tannins, fresh acidity and a long, spiced finish. Serve at seventeen to eighteen degrees, decanting an hour or two ahead. Good with grilled beef, roast lamb and game.