2015 Isole e Olena Chianti Classico Gran Selezione
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Tasting notes
Lots of ripe fruit in the nose with dried-cheese and spice character. Full-bodied with round, ripe and velvety tannins and a juicy finish. Very flavorful and delicious now.
Critic scores
Jancis Robinson MW
James Suckling
More reviews and scores
Barberino Tavernelle. 92% Sangiovese, 8% Petit Verdot grown at 350–490 m elevation from an estate that has been completely replanted by Paolo De Marchi. Dark crimson. Intense, turbo-charged version of the regular Chianti Classico from this admirable estate with more pronounced acidity and tannin. Not nearly ready even at six years old! I do wonder whether we need this rendition? (JR)
The 2015 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione, essentially a selection of the best barrels of Cepparello, is a gorgeous wine. More than anything, the 2015 is remarkable considering the challenges of a growing season in which rain during harvest created significant challenges. Nevertheless, Paolo De Marchi coaxed all of the potential out of his vines in 2015, adding a good dollop of Petit Verdot to the Sangiovese in crafting the Gran Selezione. Dense, powerful and beautifully textured, with intense underpinnings of saline minerality. The 2015 has a brilliant future, but it won't see the light until fall 2020 at the very earliest.
About the producer
Situated north of Castellina, on the western side of Chianti Classico, Isole e Olena was created by the De Marchi family in the 1950s and has since become one of the region’s leading names. It is renowned for its top bottling Cepparello, a pure Sangiovese, as well as its brilliant Chardonnay.