Winemaker Notes
Intense elegant wine with great structure and complexity, lovely balance between acidity, fruit and tannins. A great wine, beyond the grape varietal it is made from, must be expression of the piece of land it came from. Beyond being essentially good, it has to be a classic in its own way.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
The floral aromas are spellbinding, with aromas of violets, lilacs, orange peel, raspberries, rose petals, and some oranges. It’s medium- to full-bodied with crunchy and open-grain tannins that are creamy and caressing. It’s endless in the finish. Crunchy and energetic. A wine that is thoughtful and gives you such great pleasure. Such purity. It’s like eating perfectly ripened grape must. Pure merlot. Drinkable in many ways, but will come together beautifully. A new reference point for merlot in Italy.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Petrolo 2022 Val d'Arno di Sopra Galatrona is a beautiful wine with an elegantly focused and streamlined style. Proprietor Luca Sanjust describes this vintage as "the most Tuscan version of Galatrona" he has produced, and he remarks on the ability of Merlot, the grape used here, to resemble Sangiovese in the unique Valdarno territory. Winemaking has been tweaked to produce the wine in an initially more reductive style to ensure better and longer bottle evolution. The team is working with better woods, neutral oak and bigger capacities. There is more work with the lees and no racking. The wine shows a core of dark fruit with wild berries and pressed rose. This medium-plus Tuscan Merlot concludes with lasting freshness. The Galatrona site has mixed soils with sand, rocks and clay. Two geological plates meet at this spot, and the clay pan folds underground as a result. The site is surrounded by cooling forests.
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Decanter
Petrolo's single-vineyard Merlot from the Arno Valley is a benchmark Tuscan example of the variety. Vinified in cement tanks, it then spends around 20 months in French oak barriques, one-third new. Bonfire and spiced plum aromas lead to a vibrant, tightly coiled palate full of energy. The black and red berry core is precise and generous, while there's an underlying salinity which connects the fruit and gum-tingling acidity. The tannins are ripe and round, fine and dextrous, laying in support rather than in a leading role. Very primary and with a noticeably woody finish at present, this demands time to show it at its best.
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Vinous
The 2022 Galatrona, 100% Merlot, is another super-attractive wine from Petrolo. It offers lovely up-front appeal to match its easygoing personality. Blue/purplish fruit, licorice, lavender, spice and mocha meld together. The 2022 naturally does not have the structure or depth of the top years, but that simply was not possible in this vintage.
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Wine Spectator
This red is packed with blackberry, black cherry, plum, iron and tobacco flavors. Though vibrant and backed by a dense matrix of tannins, overall this ends with an elegant feel and excellent length.
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.