Tuscany: A Study in Terroir Tasting

Saturday April 26th, 2014 at Del Posto, 85 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011

1:30pm – 3:30pm

In the Saturday afternoon session, Antonio Galloni will moderate a seated tasting of the Tuscan wines. The Tuscany: A Study in Terroir tasting will explore the subtleties and nuances of Tuscany's diverse microclimates. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask producers questions in a highly interactive, engaging setting.

Gala Dinner & Charity Auction

Saturday April 26th, 2014 at Del Posto, 85 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011

6:00pm Champagne Reception

6:30pm Dinner

Join fifteen of Tuscany’s finest producers for what is sure to be an extraordinary dinner at New York City’s Del Posto, the first Italian restaurant to receive a coveted four-star rating from The New York Times in over thirty years. Each winemaker will pour an older vintage from their library at the BYOB Gala Dinner, where guests bring wines from their own cellars to share with their friends and other diners. The Charity Auction will consist of a handful of specially selected, rare lots. This year we are supporting The Zone, a state-of-the art facility within The Mount Sinai Hospital that helps seriously ill children and their families cope with hospitalization. A group of New York’s most talented sommeliers drawn from the city’s top restaurants will oversee wine service.

Agricola Querciabella

Sebastiano Cossia Castiglioni

Querciabella is an estate in serious motion. Over the last few years, proprietor Sebastiano Cossia Castiglioni has stepped up Querciabella's game, big time. A vocal animal-rights activist and man of great culture, Castiglioni has spared no expense and overlooked no detail in his quest to make the best wines possible. For that, he and his team are hugely deserving of the acclaim that has come their way.

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Camartina

Gala Dinner: 1999 Camartina

Antinori

Marchese Piero Antinori

Piero Antinori and longtime winemaker Renzo Cotarella have been the leading forces in Italian wines for decades. With estates spread throughout the country, today Antinori produces high-quality wines in many appellations. Antinori has done a fabulous job with their 2010s. Specifically, the dual flagships Tignanello and Solaia are off the charts in a vintage that is likely to go down as one of the all-time greats for both wines.

Further reading: Antinori Solaia – A Complete Retrospective 1978-2010

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Tignanello

Gala Dinner: 1997 Solaia

Castell'in Villa

Princess Coralia Pignatelli della Leonessa

Although deeply admired and revered by the cognoscenti, Castell'in Villa still flies under the radar. This small, pristine property boasts a track record of fabulous wines that goes back to the 1970s, and also supplied fruit for some of the most famous Tuscan wines of that early period. The estate’s charming proprietress, Princess Coralia Pignatelli della Leonessa, and her late husband, found the property in 1967 and purchased it the following year.

Further reading: Castell’in Villa – An Icon Revisited: 1971-2007

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2008 Chianti Classico Riserva              

Gala Dinner: 1995 Chianti Classico Riserva                                                                                                                                 

Castello dei Rampolla

Maurizia Di Napoli

Castello dei Rampolla is located in Panzano’s famous Conca d’Oro or ‘golden basin,’ an amphitheater of striking, pristine hillside vineyards. Brother and sister team Luca and Maurizia Di Napoli continue to take Rampolla to even greater heights. The dual flagships Sammarco and d'Alceo are brilliant across all vintages. The Di Napolis are strong proponents of biodynamic farming and have been experimenting with terra cotta amphora in recent years.

Further reading: Castello dei Rampolla d’Alceo – A Complete Retrospective 1996-2011

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2009 Sammarco

Gala Dinner: 2003 Sammarco                                                                                                                                                                     

Castello di Ama

Lorenza Sebasti Pallanti, Marco Pallanti

Proprietors Marco and Lorenza Pallanti are true visionaries. An approach built on painstaking attention to detail, along with an uncompromising commitment to quality and a willingness to take risks places them among the world’s elite producers. Castello di Ama have recently added a new wine, the Chianti Classico Riserva that may become a Gran Selezione, as well as the Haiku. Castello di Ama makes duel flagship wines, Chianti Classico Bellavista and L’Apparita.

Further reading: L’Apparita Retrospective 1985-2009, Chianti Classico Vigneto Bellavista 1982-2007

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 L'Apparita

Gala Dinner: 1990 Chianti Classico Vigneto Bellavista

Fattoria di Fèlsina

Giuseppe Mazzocolin, Giovanni Poggiali

Fèlsina is one of the benchmark properties in Chianti Classico. The estate’s flagship Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia boasts an exceptional track record of excellence going back more than 30 years. Today Giovanni Poggiali is building on an exceptional legacy of quality and innovation built by Giuseppe Mazzocolin over the last three decades.

Further reading: Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia: A Complete Retrospective 1983-2011

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia

Gala Dinner: 1995 Fontalloro                                                                                                                                         

Fontodi

Giovanni Manetti

Fontodi is one of the most impressive wineries in Chianti Classico. Proprietor Giovanni Manetti has elevated Fontodi from a sleepy, average estate to a world-class winery. The estate’s dual flagships Flaccianello and Chianti Classico Riserva Vigna del Sorbo are reliably outstanding examples of these great terroirs in Chianti Classico’s Conca d’Oro.

Further reading: Flaccianello and the Path to Greatness: 1981-2009, Fontodi: Chianti Classico Riserva Vigna del Sorbo 1985-2010

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Chianti Classico Riserva Vigna del Sorbo

Gala Dinner: 1997 Flaccianello (Magnum)

Isole e Olena

Paolo De Marchi

Proprietor Paolo De Marchi has left an indelible and highly personal stamp on Isole e Olena and all of Chianti Classico, for that matter. Originally of Piedmontese descent, De Marchi stands apart from many of his colleagues for his vocal opinions and intense dedication to the vineyard above all else. Since taking over his family's estate in the late 1970s, De Marchi has transformed Isole e Olena into a powerhouse. While Isole e Olena remains less well known than some of their more famous neighbors, these wines are world class.

Further reading: Isole e Olena Cepparello: The Heart and Soul of Sangiovese

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Cepparello

Gala Dinner: 1995 Cepparello

Le Macchiole

Cinzia Merli

Cinzia Merli and her late husband Eugenio Campolmi bought Le Macchiole, which sits just across the road from Ornellaia, in 1982. In the 1990s, Le Macchiole began to turn their attention single-variety wines and micro-vinifications that form the core of the estate’s approach to this day. Paleo (Cabernet Franc) and Messorio (Merlot) are two of Le Macchiole’s flagship wines, and among the best in Italy.

Further reading: Le Macchiole Messorio 1994-2006: A Study in Greatness, Paleo with Cinzia Merli, Le Macchiole Paleo Rosso 1992-2012

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Paleo

Gala Dinner: 2001 Messorio                                                                                                                                              

Podere Forte

Cristian Cattaneo

'Fortune favors the bold,' says proprietor Pasquale Forte. That pretty much sums it up. Forte is part of a group of Italian businessmen that define the entrepreneurial spirit of Italy's northern provinces. The attention to detail in the vineyards is impressive, while the cellar is impeccably clean, something that is quite rare in Tuscany. The 2010s are simply off the charts. Credit to longtime winemaker, Cristian Cattaneo, who is matching Forte’s pioneering style with a number of as yet unreleased but impeccable experimental wines.

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Petrucci

Gala Dinner: 2008 Petrucci (Magnum)

Poggio Scalette

Jurij Fiore

Poggio Scalette is a tiny, family-run property located in the hills of Greve right next to neighbors Querciabella. The estate is run by father and son team Vittorio and Jurij Fiore. Vittorio is most well-known as consulting oenologist for a number of top wineries, including Costanti and Il Carnasciale, while Jurij oversees the day to day work at Poggio Scalette itself. The hillside vineyards are located at about 500 meters in altitude, which is ideal for making elegant, finessed wines that are capable of aging.

Further reading: Poggio Scalette: Il Carbonaione 1992-2007

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Il Carbonaione

Gala Dinner: 1992 Il Carbonaione

San Giusto a Rentennano

Luca Martini di Cigala

The truth is Luca Martini di Cigala would rather be in the vineyard than at a tasting, such is his total commitment to quality. San Giusto a Rentennano’s flagship Sangiovese Percarlo has been a standard bearer of quality since its creation in 1985. Percarlo started off as a selection of the estate’s best vineyards. In 2001 the Martini di Cigalas moved to a bunch-by-bunch selection across all of the fruit that comes into the winery, an approach they favor because of the huge inconsistency Sangiovese often shows from vine to vine, and even within the same cluster.

Further reading: Complete vertical of Percarlo

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Percarlo

Gala Dinner: 2004 Percarlo

Tenuta dell'Ornellaia

Leonardo Raspini

Tenuta dell’Ornellaia is the brainchild of Lodovico Antinori, who founded this gorgeous, sprawling estate in Tuscany’s Maremma in 1981. The first vintages were overseen by the legendary oenologist and winemaker Andre Tchelistcheff, a mantel successfully carried by Axel Heinz today. The estate produces a wide range of wines, from the entry-level Le Volte to the super-premium Merlot Masseto, but it is Ornellaia that best captures the philosophy of the estate.

Further reading: Axel Heinz on 2010s, Masseto – A Complete Retrospective 1986-2008, Ornellaia: A Major Retrospective 1985-2006

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Ornellaia

Gala Dinner: 1997 Ornellaia (Magnum), 2004 Masseto 

Tenuta di Trinoro

Andrea Franchetti

Andrea Franchetti is one of Italy's most fascinating winemakers. Franchetti’s reds from Tenuta di Trinoro, which sits in one of the most remote corners of Tuscany, are endowed with personality and character. These wines – the product of an owner totally obsesses with quality – are among the most compelling in Italy.

Further reading: Tenuta di Trinoro: Tenuta di Trinoro 1997-2005

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2011 Tenuta di Trinoro

Gala Dinner: 2001 Tenuta di Trinoro (Magnum)                                                                                                                                

Tenuta San Guido

Priscilla Incisa della Rocchetta

Mario Incisa della Rocchetta founded Tenuta San Guido in the late 1940s and began producing Cabernet based wines almost immediately. Sassicaia was originally made for personal consumption only until Mario’s son, Nicolò, and Piero Antinori convinced him to release it commercially. The inaugural 1968 vintage was an instant hit. The rest, as they say, is history.

Featured wines:

Study in Terroir tasting: 2010 Sassicaia

Gala Dinner: 1998 Sassicaia

Tuscany: A Study in Terroir Tasting

Saturday April 26th, 2014 at Del Posto, 85 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011

1:30pm – 3:30pm

In the Saturday afternoon session, Antonio Galloni will moderate a seated tasting of the Tuscan wines. The Tuscany: A Study in Terroir tasting will explore the subtleties and nuances of Tuscany's diverse microclimates. Attendees will have the opportunity to ask producers questions in a highly interactive, engaging setting.

Tuscany: A Study in Terroir tasting - The Wines

2010 Agricola Querciabella Camartina

2010 Antinori Tignanello

2008 Castell'in Villa Chianti Classico Riserva

2009 Castello dei Rampolla Sammarco

2010 Castello di Ama L'Apparita

2010 Fattoria di Fèlsina Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia

2010 Fontodi Chianti Classico Riserva Vigna del Sorbo 

2010 Isole e Olena Cepparello

2010 Le Macchiole Paleo

2010 Podere Forte Petrucci

2010 Poggio Scalette Il Carbonaione

2010 San Giusto a Rentennano Percarlo

2010 Tenuta dell'Ornellaia Ornellaia

2011 Tenuta di Trinoro Tenuta di Trinoro

2010 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia

Gala Dinner & Charity Auction

Saturday April 26th, 2014 at Del Posto, 85 10th Avenue, New York, NY 10011

6:00pm Champagne Reception

6:30pm Dinner and Charity Auction

Join fifteen of Tuscany’s finest producers for what is sure to be an extraordinary dinner at New York City’s Del Posto, the first Italian restaurant to receive a coveted four-star rating from The New York Times in over thirty years. Each winemaker will pour an older vintage from their library at the BYOB Gala Dinner, where guests bring wines from their own cellars to share with their friends and other diners. The Charity Auction will consist of a handful of specially selected, rare lots. This year we are supporting The Zone, a state-of-the art facility within The Mount Sinai Hospital that helps seriously ill children and their families cope with hospitalization. A group of New York’s most talented sommeliers drawn from the city’s top restaurants will oversee wine service.

Gala Dinner Wines:

1999 Agricola Querciabella Camartina 

1997 Antinori Solaia

1995 Castell'in Villa Chianti Classico Riserva

2003 Castello dei Rampolla Sammarco

1990 Castello di Ama Chianti Classico Vigneto Bellavista

1995 Fattoria di Fèlsina Fontalloro

1997 Fontodi Flaccianello (Magnum)

1995 Isole e Olena Cepparello

2001 Le Macchiole Messorio

2008 Podere Forte Petrucci (Magnum)

1992 Poggio Scalette Il Carbonaione

2004 San Giusto a Rentennano Percarlo

1997 Tenuta dell'Ornellaia Ornellaia (Magnum)

2004 Masseto Masseto

2001 Tenuta di Trinoro Tenuta di Trinoro (Magnum)

1998 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia

The following wines will be available in a handful of lots during the Charity Auction, hosted by Wally's Auctions:

1982 Moët & Chandon Dom Pérignon Œnothèque Rosé (1 Magnum) - from Antonio and Marzia Galloni's personal cellar

1990 Tenuta dell'Ornellaia (3 Magnums)

1995 Castell'in Villa Chianti Classico Riserva (1 Magnum )

1997 Tenuta dell'Ornellaia Masseto (1 Magnum)

1997 Tenuta San Guido Sassicaia (1 Double Magnum)

2001 Fattoria di Fèlsina Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia (1 Double Magnum)

2003 Castello dei Rampolla d'Alceo (1 Bottle)

2004 Agricola Querciabella Camartina (1 Methuselah, equivalent of 8 bottles)

2004 Castello di Ama Chianti Classico Vigneto La Casuccia (1 Magnum)

2006 Fontodi Flaccianello (1 Double Magnum)

2006 Isole e Olena Cepparello (1 Double Magnum)

2006 Soldera - Case Basse Brunello di Montalcino Riserva (1 Double Magnum) - with hand-drawn label

2008 Poggio Scalette Piantonaia (1 Bottle)

2008 San Giusto a Rentennano La Ricolma (1 Magnum)

2009 Antinori Matarocchio (1 Magnum)

2009 Tenuta di Trinoro Tenuta di Trinoro (1 Double Magnum)

2010 Le Macchiole Paleo Rosso (1 Double Magnum)

2010 Podere Forte Petrucci (1 Bottle)

 We look forward to welcoming you to Tuscany in the City.

If you have questions or comments please contact us at events@vinousmedia.com

All information is accurate as of April 23rd, 2014 and is subject to change.

Twitter hashtag: #TuscanyNYC