Antinori - Solaia 2021 Ml. 750

The historian Carocci, in his historical-artistic guide to the town of San Casciano Val di Pesa, written in 1829, described Tignanello, a farm with an extensive vineyard, as one of the highest and most picturesque points of the entire township territory. On the top of the hill, thanks to its panoramic position and the fertility of the vegetation, could be found a small group of houses, some of which were very old indeed.
The Tenuta Tignanello estate is located between the Greve and Pesa river valleys in the heart of the Chianti Classico appellation., between the two hamlets of Montefiridolfi and Santa Maria a Macerata, 30 kilometers (19 miles) to the south of the city of Florence. In these 127 hectares (320 acres) of vineyards, the Antinori family, more than anywhere else, has expressed its principles and working philosophy: reconcile tradition and modernity with wines which are strictly and authentically tied to their territories of origin. Solaia and Tignanello, the due iconic wines of the estate, have been defined by the international press as among the most influential wines in the viticultural history of Italy and are a constant symbol for the Antin.
Vineyards
The vineyards are divided into small parcels which include two jewels: the 57 hectares (some 140 acres) of the Tignanello vineyard and the contiguous 20 hectares (50 acres) of the Solaia vineyard. The soil of the property, which dates from the Pliocene epoch, generally with little fertility and limited supplies of ground water and with sub-soils rich in limestone and calcareous clay rock, constitutes something special and unique. Together with the particular position of the vineyards, planted at an altitude between 340 and 400 meters (1175-1325 feet) in altitude, it contributes to obtaining wines of decisive character and a distinct elegance: the grapes enjoy warm days and cool nights during the growing season.
The grape varieties which have been planted at Tignanello include the native Sangiovese and the non-traditional Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. There are small quantities of white grapes, Malvasia and Trebbiano, utilized for the production of Vin Santo. Other non-traditional grapes at Tignanello include a few rows of Syrah and Merlot, planted for experimental purposes during the 1970's.
The property also includes 37 hectares (over 90 acres) of olive groves which produce a small quantity of olive oil.
Cellar
Made to measure attention and care guide the cellar work as well: Tignanello and Solaia, in fact, have cellars for the fermentation and aging of the wines dedicated solely to them. The fermenting cellars, completely renovated in 2008, are located in an old building close to the estate's villa, and the aging or barrel cellars are, effectively, the cellar of the villa.
The fermenting cellars were planned with the aim of the maximum attention to detail and to the achievement of significant subtleties in the wines. This is possible thanks to equipment, tools, modern material, but certainly to human sensibility as well.
An area for receiving the crop was created solely for the Solaia grapes: after destemming, a manual selection on a conveyor belt, berry by berry, is carried out. The berries then go into the fermenting tanks, on top of which there is pressing equipment
which allows the crushed gapes to go directly into their fermenters.
Small (60 hectoliter), conical oak fermenters were selected in order to carry out the punching down of the cap of skins without excessive force or impact, a working method, therefore, which is particularly delicate. After the fermentation, the wine goes directly into the underground aging cellars, moving solely by the force of gravity.
The aging cellars in which the Solaia barrels are situated, one with a classic arched stone ceiling, is part of the original structure of the villa, while the Tignanello aging cellars are a later enlargement, realized and created expressly for the aging of the wine in barrel.