Solaia

In the glass

Aroma: cassis, graphite, violet, tobacco, sweet cedar

Palate: blackcurrant, espresso, iron, polished oak

Cabernet-led sibling of Tignanello, denser and more international in profile, with cassis and graphite intensity over a long Tuscan acid spine.

What it pairs with

• Florentine T-bone, charcoal-grilled Find florentine t-bone, charcoal-grilled on TableJourney →
  The wine's volume of fruit and oak demand a high-impact protein.
• Hard mountain cheeses with truffle honey
  The wine's sweet cedar resonates with truffle aromatics.
• Rib of beef, dry-aged Find rib of beef, dry-aged on TableJourney →
  Cabernet's iron-and-graphite mineral signature finds a partner in dry-aged beef umami.

History

Launched seven years after Tignanello as the Cabernet-dominant counterpart from the same hillside at the Tenuta Tignanello estate. Wine Spectator named Solaia 1997 its Wine of the Year for 2000, the first Italian wine to win the title.

1. 1978 — First vintage released
2. 2000 — Wine Spectator names Solaia 1997 its Wine of the Year

Facts

Producer

Marchesi Antinori

Grapes

Cabernet Sauvignon (75%), Sangiovese (20%), Cabernet Franc (5%)

Classification

Toscana IGT

Oak

18 months in French oak barriques, predominantly new

ABV

14.5%

Price

EUR 280 to 450 at retail

Drinking window

8 to 30 from vintage

First vintage

1978

Scores

• Wine Advocate 98 (2019 vintage, reviewed 2022)
• Wine Spectator 98 (1997 vintage, reviewed 2000)

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