Winemaker Notes
One of the finest examples of Bordeaux varietals grown in Italy, made only from mature vineyards to produce a complex, age-worthy Cabernet-based blend. The Cabernet Sauvignon shows pure berry and cassis fruit flavors on the palate with focused and layered expressions of blackberry fruit, vanilla, and minerals. Savory in flavor, velvety in texture with firm yet supple tannins.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Notes of chocolate-coated dark cherries and cassis with roasted walnut, nutmeg, cedar and spice box. Full-bodied, big and opulent with an array of ripe and compact tannins coming through. Toned acidity gives energy and juiciness to the dark fruit. Really polished and refined. Better from 2025.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Isole e Olena 2018 Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione Privata is actually mostly Cabernet Sauvignon tweaked with small percentages of Cabernet Franc, Merlot and Petit Verdot (with 5,000 bottles released). These other varieties serve to flesh out the wine and tighten the bouquet. It boasts luscious dark concentration with black fruit, grilled herb, crushed stone and sweet crème de cassis. Those bold flavors are followed by a 15% alcohol content (a sign of the times with ongoing climate change) that is gracefully integrated here. This is another long-term proposition for your cellar.
Legendary in Italy for its Renaissance art and striking landscape, Tuscany is also home to many of the country’s best red wines. Sangiovese reigns supreme here, as either the single varietal, or a dominant player, in almost all of Tuscany’s best.
A remarkable Chianti, named for its region of origin, will have a bright acidity, supple tannins and plenty of cherry fruit character. From the hills and valleys surrounding the medieval village of Montalcino, come the distinguished and age-worthy wines based on Brunello (Sangiovese). Earning global acclaim since the 1970s, the Tuscan Blends are composed solely of international grape varieties or a mix of international and Sangiovese. The wine called Vine Nobile di Montepulciano, composed of Prognolo Gentile (Sangiovese) and is recognized both for finesse and power.