06
Aug
2026
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Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy
(February 2026) ... Time to look at the wines of the Anteprima Toscana 2026. This year I will break the wines down a little more, compartmentalizing them so they are easier to find on the website. Starting with the vintage 2024 ... these are the early wines, the ones we are here to taste and judge; the NEW vintage.
In this range, I tasted a handful of the wines (~40) to get a feeling on how the vintage was.
My "Personal Aside" is a note taken to encompass the whole of what I have tasted, and was written after tasting all the wines in a category and on the spot to get my unvarnished reaction.
Notes are on wines that are rated BETTER and above; even the barrel samples (they are unfinished wines, so I have unfinished notes).
Personal Aside: 2024 seems to be a super juicy vintage with lots of fruit and fun in the bottle - there's a lot to get excited about.
BETTER-PLUS ...
Il Molino di Grace 2024 Il Molino di Grace - Chianti Classico
Layers of complexity in a "base-model" Chianti Classico" is a good thing; and extremely welcome. This one has cherry, raspberry, strawberry, balsamic, hints of herbal and gentle spice. Plus, the acidity is on point. Bravo.
BETTER ... 
Antinori 2024 Pèppoli - Chianti Classico
Ripe cherry, strawberry, fresh and fruity. Easy to drink. Juicy and yummy.
Castellare di Castellina 2024 Castellare - Chianti Classico
Quite juicy and approachable; a lovely fresh wine, good acidity, with nice cherry flavour at its core. Drink up.
Castello di Monsanto 2023 Castello di Monsanto - Chianti Classico
(barrel sample) - no note, but this has potential to be a banger
Monteraponi 2024 Monteraponi - Chianti Classico
Nice depth of flavour with plenty of power and punch. Acidity shows some real pop. Delightful and on the dark fruit side with a few shakes of balsamic for depth.
Querceto di Castellina 2024 L'aura - Chianti Classico
(barrel sample) - no note, but this has potential to be a banger
Rocca delle Macìe 2024 Rocca delle Macìe - Chianti Classico
There is some nice spice, fruit and acidity that mixes and matches along the way: spiced-cherry, strawberry; bright, fresh and lively.
GOOD-PLUS ...
Badia a Coltibuono 2024 Chianti Classico
Capraia 2024 Capraia - Chianti Classico
Castello di Gabbiano 2024 Castello di Gabbiano - Chianti Classico
Castello Vicchiomaggio 2024 Guado Alto - Chianti Classico
Riecine 2024 Riecine - Chianti Classico
Ruffino 2024 Santedame - Chianti Classico
GOOD ...
Banfi 2024 Chianti Classico
Brancaia 2024 Chianti Classico
Carpineto 2024 Carpineto - Chianti Classico
Castello di Querceto 2024 Castello di Querceto - Chianti Classico
Fèlsina 2024 Berardenga - Chianti Classico
Il Poggiolino 2024 Il Classico - Chianti Classico
Lamole di Lamole 2024 Duelame - Chianti Classico
Principe Corsini - Villa Le Corti 2024 Le Corti - Chianti Classico
Ricasoli 2024 Brolio - Chianti Classico
Tenuta Collazzi 2024 Bastioni - Chianti Classico
Tenuta di Bibbiano 2024 Bibbiano - Chianti Classico
Next up: Vintage 2023 - plus older vintages 2018-2022
21
Jul
2026
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Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy
June 2025 ... An offer to tour some wineries in Campania, learn about volcanic soils, taste new grape varieties, drink and eat great food and wine - and then there is the Buffalo Mozerella. All in a days work on the road in Italy.
ALOIS
A wonderful crash course in volcanic soil and the area, followed by a memorable lunch and wine tasting, made this one of the better tastings of this trip – and we’ve just begun.
2015 Caiati
(Pallagrello Bianco)
Mixing the cru vineyard with the volcanic, in stainless in a hot vintage ... alcoholic taste comes through with a citrus zesty finish. (GOOD)
2021 Morrone
(Pallagrello Bianco)
Very mouthfilling, age-worthy as the wine seems similar each year, the palate, the nose, the character. See more of these wines below. (GOOD)
2022 Morrone
(Pallagrello Bianco)
There is a more salty character, with more citrus pith, more finish, more acidity, a certain winning concentration here. This was a mildew / rainy season early on and less grapes were harvested; but the results speak for themselves. (GOOD) 
2023 Morrone
(Pallagrello Bianco)
Clay soil and their Cru wine - it has fatter character with a long finish and decent acidity. Seriously good white. (GOOD)
2018 Morrone
(Pallagrello Bianco)
Similar to the 2020 vintage: softer, rounder, subtle, spicier; larger mouthfeel, but still with good acidity and salinity (GOOD+)
2018 Murella
(Pallagrello Nero)
Blood orange on the nose; big acidity, sour cherry, cranberry and red licorice in the mouth. (GOOD+)
2013 Caiati
(Pallagrello Bianco)
Older version of the mixed the cru with the volcanic, again in stainless – this one is cool vintage. Fresh, limoncello, lemon drop, great character, no way this is 12 years old. A real eye-opener. (BETTER)
2024 Caiati
(Pallagrello Bianco)
The most recent vintage tasted - subtle citrus undertones, salty, mineral, sweaty, fresh, all with a long finish. (BETTER)
2020 Morrone 
(Pallagrello Bianco)
Proving that not all things are better with long aging. This cool vintage version show as much difference: fresher, livelier, acidity sings, grapefruit zest, finish lingers and it is pretty and damn elegant (BETTER+)
2022 Trebulanum - Riserva
(Casavecchia)
Lively and fresh, with black currant, licorice, plum and blue fruit. This is pretty with notes of floral on the nose; mineral, tannins, spice, finish the taste. This is complex; and I’ll say it again, really pretty. (BETTER+)
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DONNACHIARA
They say the wine industry has a long memory. I reviewed an older Southbrook (Ontario, Canada) wine many years ago, and I'm still told the owner has yet to forgive me. Funny thing, the wine wasn't even on his shelf anymore—it had long been sold out. It was a look back at how it had aged. 
But what about a reviewer? Are we supposed to set aside our past when we sit with a producer, say, a producer that was rude to a young writer? And do you call it out. I did not – I wrote a glowing, yet short, paragraph about my host, picked three wines I liked and moved on.
But here I am back at Donnachiara. When I last visited, our host treated me rudely, rushing me through her wines and making me feel I was not worth her time. Years later, I'm sitting down with her again, and this time she's much more cordial; yet I bet she does not remember me. Can I set aside my bias? I believe I can - in fact I let the wines speak, just as I did back in 2017 - my last visit.
2020 Taurasi Riserva
(Aglianico)
18 months minimum aging with 2 years in bottle: This ia a more oxidized, with spicier, meaty tannins. (GOOD)
2021 Lali - Rosato Extra Brut
(Aglianico)
2 years on lees - Pas Dose. Light, refreshing, and dry – it’s a nice bubble. (GOOD)
2024 Greco di Tufo DOCG
(Greco)
Basic and easy to drink, lime, mineral, salty – simple, but fresh and seafood oriented. (GOOD)
2020 Taurasi 
(Aglianico)
12 months minimum aging. Grapes come from Torre le Nocelle. Plum, black cherry, and peppery. (GOOD+)
2024 Fiano di Avellino DOCG
(Fiano)
Fresh, lively, and mineral, with plenty of citrus. (GOOD+)
2024 Empatia
(Fiano)
Single cru Montefalcione. Richer, more focused with an intense flavour profile. (GOOD+)
2024 Rosemary
(Aglianico)
Basic pink still wine with hints of cherry and rhubarb. Dry with good acidity, and plenty of citrus pith on the short finish. Nicely balanced 12% alc. (GOOD+)
2021 Taurasi
(Aglianico)
Lighter and fresher in style, dials back the dark fruit heft for a little red fruit generousity. (BETTER)
2022 Resilienza
(Falanghina)
From the area of Benevento. Fat and rich, pineapple and peach fruit with Viognier-like tropicality; but with seemingly better acidity. Pretty. (BETTER)
2023 Aletheia - Riserva
(Greco)
Single vineyard in Santa Paolina: 1 yr on fine lees; pretty floral and salty, elegant, complex there’s a lovely minerality giving this wine a long finish. (BETTER)
