2005 Masseto

It is always special to taste a winemaker’s first wines, and tasting the 2005 Masseto alongside Axel Heinz captures perfectly the emotion and purpose of what wine is all about, a living art form to be shared and bring people together. The 2005 Masseto is rich with herbaceous layers of kirsch, thyme, worn leather, and menthol. It is fleshy and full, with mocha and black truffle, and is still flush with ripe fruit that coaxes through the mid-palate, with present and firm structure. There is still enough life left in it to go at least another decade. Drink 2022-2032. The adjacent sister property to Ornellaia, the Masseto estate in Bolgheri produces benchmark wines based on Merlot, with its first vintage in 1987. Their new winery, which debuted in 2018, was designed by architects Hikaru Mori and Maurizio Zito of the ZitoMori Studio, who named it “The Quarry.” It is an impressive design, with the exterior blending into the landscape, only to reveal its true grandeur upon entering the winery beneath. One feature of the new winery has been to move away from the use of stainless steel, which they found could contribute to reductive qualities. Instead, 20 to 25% of the wine is now fermented in concrete tanks, with the remainder in oak barrels. The concrete also takes on some of the qualities of barrel fermentation, without adding the additional flavors that barrels would contribute. The oldest vines are currently approaching 40 years old, and in newer vintages, Cabernet Franc they planted more recently has been making its way into the wines. My tasting took place at the winery with the estate’s new winemaker, Gaia Cinnirella, and Axel Heinz, who has moved into an overseer role as the estate director.

This is such an enticing wine, shot through with black truffle, raspberry puree, tender tannins, with caressing waves of woodsmoke and violet. So good to drink now, this is one of my favourite of the lineup, elegant, nuanced, with a similar feel to the 2001 and 2018. This was Axel Heinz's first vintage, and one of his first decisions was to pick the best plots almost two weeks later than had been typical, right through to September 30. 100% new oak.

Tasted next to the 2002, the 2005 Masseto is perhaps a bit edgier, with an extra kick of tannic intensity that gives the wine its sense of direction and a good kick of energy too. I very much admire the tension in the 2005, a wine built on freshness, aromatic depth and mid-weight structure. Cool, rainy weather towards the end of the season resulted in a late harvest that took place between September 14 and 30.