2013 Leonetti Aglianico Serra Pedace Vineyard
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Tasting notes
(from grapes harvested in late October; one-third aged in amphoras for four years, the rest in oak): Bright, dark red-ruby. Musky dark berry aromas show a penetrating quality. Then wonderfully bracing and a bit high-toned on the palate, with flavors of crushed tart cherry and minerals supported by a firm spine of building tannins. The use of amphoras allows this wine to retain an element of mineral austerity, with the barrel component "rounding things out," noted Chris Figgins. These vines on thin soil over fractured basalt with lot of calcium were just in their fourth leaf in 2013. Clearly a site and a wine to follow--and I'm not sure I would have picked this distinctive Aglianico blind as a New World wine. (13.9% alcohol)
Critic scores
Average Score
Stephen Tanzer, Vinous
Jeb Dunnuck
More reviews and scores
The 2013 Aglianico Serra Pedace Vineyard is lovely, wafting from the glass with aromas of black cherries, cassis, bitter chocolate, aromatic bark and scorched earth. On the palate, it's full-bodied, richly tannic and layered, with lovely depth at the core and considerable power and authority. Leonetti has certainly captured Aglianico's inherent tannic super-abundance, but the tannins are fine-grained and ripe, so it should respond very well to bottle age—and food.
A new wine from Chris Figgins (I think), the 2013 Aglianico Serra Pedace Vineyard is 100% Aglianico that spent a whopping 44 months in a mix of amphora, new French oak, and neutral barrels. Deep purple/black colored with lots of black fruits, scorched earth, chocolate, and gravelly, earthy minerality, it has full-bodied richness, a rich, powerful feel, and bright acidity. It's certainly an interesting wine that has loads of tannin and acidity, and I suspect will be best with 3-5 years of bottle age. This was another terrific lineup from winemaker Chris Figgins, who never seems to miss a step. Both of his Cabernet Sauvignon releases are brilliant wines that check-in near the top of the vintage, but readers also shouldn’t miss his straight Merlot and Sangiovese.