2021 Massetino, Masseto, Tuscany, Italy
Critics reviews
The 2021 Massetino is a supremely elegant and gracious wine. Silky tannins caress a core of blackberry, espresso, mocha, liquorice, cloves and lavender. All the elements are so nicely balanced in this super-appealing, racy second wine from Masseto.
There's quite a bit of news at Ornellaia and sister estate Masseto. Longtime Estate Manager Axel Heinz departed the wineries earlier this summer for his native Bordeaux, which opens a new chapter for both estates. “Two thousand-twenty was the last in a trio of vintages with more rain than usual and no drought, but quite a bit of heat during summer," Heinz explained. "Temperatures moderated in August, with the arrival of cool evenings. We picked quite a bit of Merlot early for the aromatics. Temperatures then rose markedly, leading to a week of rain, and then finally to good weather through to the end of harvest."
Masseto is a terrific example of the restrained style of 2020, while Massetino is an equally fine and representative 2021.
Drink 2026 - 2036
Antonio Galloni, Vinous.com (August 2023)
The Masseto 2021 Massetino is mostly Merlot with a touch of Cabernet Franc for good measure. The wine (packaged in a heavy glass bottle) is very richly concentrated and layered. You see (and taste) the opulent texture of the wine as it slowly coats the glass. Quality fruit is matched by carefully selected oak, and the intensity of both builds on the palate. This vintage is poised for especially long cellar ageing. This vintage of Massetino (2021) scores neck-in-neck with the current vintage (2020) of Masseto.
Drink 2025 - 2045
Monica Larner, Wine Advocate (May 2023)
Sweet berries with violet and rose aromas. Raspberries. So perfumed. Medium-bodied with very fine velvety tannins that run the length of the wine. Vibrant at the end. Second wine of Masseto. Best ever.
Drink in 2027 but already a joy to taste
James Suckling, JamesSuckling.com (August 2023)
Dried herbs and dried flowers on the nose with quite dominant oaky scents. Ripe black fruit and abundant tannins, not so rich or fleshy but massy in the mouth, wide, giving a large structure which supports the expression. This is smooth and bright with grip and intensity but you can really feel the alcohol here and it detracts from any kind of delicate nuance with toasted spices, coffee, dark chocolate and cedar at the fore. Heady and overt, powerful, though sleek and layered, the tannins are great and the fruit feels both cool and ripe but there's an underlying sense of heat from start to finish. Malolactic fermentation in French barriques (50% new) then 12 months ageing after which the 90% Merlot and 10% Cabernet Franc were blended and returned to barriques for three months before bottling. Winemaker Gaia Cinnirella.
Drink 2025 - 2036
Georgina Hindle, Decanter.com (August 2023)
A deep but transparent red colour, the 2021 Massetino is harmonious and pure with aromas of polished leather, red apple, Amarena cherry, violets, and fresh rosemary. It’s penetrating on the palate, with outstanding freshness within this full-bodied red, offering ripe tannins, refreshing acidity, and very nice structure. It boasts a beautiful and clean mineral flourish on the very long and even finish, with a hint of warmth and cocoa on the back palate. It is fabulous already without anything sticking out and captures the warmth of the vintage with a graceful approach, while its liqueur-like fruit lasts for ages on the finish. A fantastic vintage for this wine.
Drink 2025 - 2045
Audrey Frick, JebDunnuck.com (January 2024)
About this WINE
Masseto
Masseto is an Italian wine produced in the Bolgheri of Tuscany, specifically within the coastal area known as the Maremma. It is renowned as one of Italy’s most prestigious and sought-after wines, particularly for its exceptional quality and limited production.
Masseto is made exclusively from Merlot grapes, which is somewhat unusual for Tuscany, as many other regional top wines are predominantly composed of Sangiovese. The choice of Merlot is significant because it thrives in the clay-rich soil of the Masseto vineyard, producing grapes of exceptional quality.
The vineyard is located in the Bolgheri region, specifically in the Tenuta dell’Ornellaia estate. Its unique terroir, characterized by clay soil mixed with gravel and excellent drainage, contributes to the wine’s distinct character and complexity. The winemaking process involves hand-harvesting the Merlot grapes, careful sorting, and fermentation in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks. The wine is then aged in French oak barrels, with a portion of new barrels each vintage to provide structure and complexity.
Masseto is produced in minimal quantities, making it a rare and highly sought-after wine. The annual production is small, with variations depending on vintage conditions.
Bolgheri
Bolgheri is a new DOC in the coastal Maremma region which first rose to prominence during the 1970s with the emergence of the so-called Super Tuscan wines like Ornellaia and Sassicaia. These new ventures had rocked the DOC establishment by using high proportions of Cabernet Sauvignon, opting out of the DOC system and relabeling their wines as simply Vino da Tavola (table wine).
Having won universal acclaim and exchanging hands for unprecedented prices (higher even than Tuscany's finest examples), the authorities relented and awarded Bolgheri its own DOC. The actions of the Super Tuscans inspired a generation in Italy, even if some of the wines here have lost a little of their lustre since.
Merlot
The most widely planted grape in Bordeaux and a grape that has been on a relentless expansion drive throughout the world in the last decade. Merlot is adaptable to most soils and is relatively simple to cultivate. It is a vigorous naturally high yielding grape that requires savage pruning - over-cropped Merlot-based wines are dilute and bland. It is also vital to pick at optimum ripeness as Merlot can quickly lose its varietal characteristics if harvested overripe.
In St.Emilion and Pomerol it withstands the moist clay rich soils far better than Cabernet grapes, and at it best produces opulently rich, plummy clarets with succulent fruitcake-like nuances. Le Pin, Pétrus and Clinet are examples of hedonistically rich Merlot wines at their very best. It also plays a key supporting role in filling out the middle palate of the Cabernet-dominated wines of the Médoc and Graves.
Merlot is now grown in virtually all wine growing countries and is particularly successful in California, Chile and Northern Italy.
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Description
A deep but transparent red colour, the 2021 Massetino is harmonious and pure with aromas of polished leather, red apple, Amarena cherry, violets, and fresh rosemary. It’s penetrating on the palate, with outstanding freshness within this full-bodied red, offering ripe tannins, refreshing acidity, and very nice structure. It boasts a beautiful and clean mineral flourish on the very long and even finish, with a hint of warmth and cocoa on the back palate. It is fabulous already without anything sticking out and captures the warmth of the vintage with a graceful approach, while its liqueur-like fruit lasts for ages on the finish. A fantastic vintage for this wine.
Drink 2025 - 2045
Audrey Frick, JebDunnuck.com (January 2024)
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