Bibi Graetz Colore 2016
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James
Suckling -
Robert
Parker -
Wine
Spectator
Product Details
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Winemaker Notes
After the magnificent 2015 vintage, winemaker, Bibi Graetz, couldn’t believe that the quality of 2016 was even higher! Walking in the vineyards during the harvest he had the impression of being in the middle of hundreds of bronze sculptures, the grapes looked like perfect artifacts. He's not surprised by the result of the wine,powerful, with a lot of tension and a solid structure. Full bodied and dense this Colore has a lot of blackberries, tobacco and plum.
Blend: 80% Sangiovese, 10% Canaiolo, 10% Colorino
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Floral and perfumed with wonderful firmness and brightness. Mushroom and wet earth. Full-bodied with firm, linear tannins. Long and focused. Racy and refined. Iron and dried mushroom. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
A blend of Sangiovese (at about 80% of the mix), Canaiolo and Colorino from three far-removed vineyard parcels in different areas of Tuscany, the 2016 Colore is something of a pan-Tuscan wine. This ambitious wine gives voice to three of the region's most important red grape varieties as well as its most diverse territories (Lamole in Chianti Classico, Vincigliata near Florence and Siena province in the southern part of Tuscany). As a result, this is a statement wine with a lot to say to those careful enough to listen. It's important to be attentive to the details, the small berry fruit aromas that intermingle with nuances of spice, granite stone and pressed blue flower. Pure summer cherry is the dominant aroma on first nose, but it slowly disintegrates as the wine takes on more air to reveal those lighter and more delicate aromas at the back. This vintage offers an ideal dose of structure matched against freshness. Bibi Graetz tells me that fruit in 2015 was beautiful, perfect to look at. Fruit in 2016, however, appeared more sculpted with more darkness and weight. On some level, those descriptions also apply to the character of these two gorgeous back-to-back vintages.
Rating: 96+ -
Wine Spectator
This is suave and expands on the palate, with cherry, black currant, mineral and woodsy underbrush notes. Shows purity to the fruit, along with support from the fine-grained tannins and lively acidity. Excellent length. Sangiovese, Canaiolo and Colorino. Drink now through 2029.
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From a medieval castle, Castello di Vincigliata, acquired by his parents over 60 years ago, winemaker Bibi Graetz crafts his wines on a hillside overlooking the great city of Florence. Beginning initially with only a small, 5-acre vineyard on this hillside in Fiesole, in little under two decades, Bibi has become one of Italy's most ingenious winemakers adding "cult winemaker" in addition to "talented abstract artist" to his dossier.
Since the release of his first wines in 2000 and without any formal training, Bibi Graetz has managed to stir-up the Tuscan wine scene, and with the creation of Testamatta and Colore, has made his name eponymous with great Tuscan wines. Regularly scoring in the high 90’s with wine publications like Wine Spectator, Wine Advocate, and James Suckling, coupled with his unique and artisanal winemaking approach, Bibi Graetz’s wines have garnered a loyal following among wine collectors and wine trade.
Sourcing grapes from parcels of old vines around Tuscany give the Bibi reds great depth and soul; while grapes from vines on the Isola del Giglio have provided proof that Tuscany can be known for beautiful white wines as well. This affinity for old vines allows for the concentrated yet elegant wines of Bibi Graetz making this portfolio a collectible from Tuscan producers. His passion for producing his flagship wines exclusively from traditional varieties of Sangiovese, Colorino, and Canaiolo for the reds and the indigenous varieties of Ansonica and Vermentino for his whites have resulted in very distinctive wines that consistently set his wines apart from those from the rest of Tuscany, and Italy.