Winemaker Notes
With vintages dating back to 1925 in their cellar, Villa di Capezzana is the flagship wine of the Tenuta di Capezzana estate and representative of Carmignano's greatest quality. Created as one of the very first protected wine-producing regions in Italy, the history of Carmignano dates back to 1716 when Cosimo III de' Medici granted the area special legal protections which prohibited other regions from using the name "Carmignano" for their wines.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A deep set of red plums and berries with some fine tobacco leaf and savory herbs, mineral and porcini. Juicy and intense on the palate with lots of chalky, nicely chewy tannins and a juicy finish. From organically grown grapes.
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Wine Enthusiast
A primarily salty, earthy and herbal nose also has sweeter aromas of wild fruits to provide balance. Darker fruits highlight the palate as black cherries dance with mulberries and blackberries, while a peppery earthiness keeps things interesting. The acidity is spirited around rigid tannins.
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Decanter
A blend of 80% Sangiovese and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon from one of Carmignano’s leading estates, matured for 12-16 months in a combination of tonneaux and botti. Concentrated and spicy, it’s full of perfumed dried fruits and violets, backed by dusty notes of tobacco and earth on the finish.
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Wine Spectator
A slightly brooding red, with firm tannins underlying plum, cherry and earth flavors, while accents of iron and tobacco emerge on the solid finish.
Disenchanted with Italian winemaking laws in the 1970s, a few rebellious Tuscan winemakers decided to get creative. Instead of following tradition, to bottle Sangiovese by itself, they started blending it with international varieties, namely Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah in differing proportions and with amazing success. However, some Tuscan Blends don’t even include Sangiovese. Somm Secret—The suffix –aia in Italian modifies a word in much the same way –y acts in English. For example, a place with many stones (sassi) becomes Sassicaia. While not all Super Tuscan producer names end in –aia, they all share a certain coy nomenclature.
With recorded history of red wine production since the Middle Ages, Carmignano is a small, ancient, central Italian subregion ten miles northwest of Florence. Carmignano grows Sangiovese with great success in low-lying hills of 160 to 650 feet above sea level.
It is the only Tuscan DOC that required the inclusion of (up to 20%) Cabernet Sauvignon in its Sangiovese-based wines years before it became popular in the Super Tuscan blends.