Sorry, The Wine Spies doesn't support Internet Explorer anymore. Please use a newer browser to continue browsing our wine collections.
What We Say 2008 Rinascita IGT Toscana Super Tuscan
Operative’s Choice:
Top International Selection
EXCLUSIVE WINE ALERT:
This delicious small production wine that is from a micro producer in the Chianti Classico region. The Wine Spies has an exclusive allocation of this wine in the United States. If you are a fan of Super Tuscans, get yourself some of this delicious wine.
SECRET SAVINGS ALERT:
Subscribe to our Daily Dispatch (above) and you’ll always know what our Top Secret coupon code of the day is. Every day we issue a new members-only code that entitles you to have Ground Shipping included on orders of six or more and, sometimes, an added discount!
Mission Codename: Rebirth of a Classic
Operative: Agent White
Objective: Secure an exclusive allocation of a delicious Super Tuscan for our operatives.
Mission Status: Accomplished!
Current Winery: Tenuta Riseccoli
Wine Subject: 2008 Rinascita IGT Toscana Super Tuscan
Backgrounder: Broadly, wines designated as Indicazione Geographica Tipica (IGT) could be considered vin de pays. Tack on the designation Rosso Toscana and you are talking about a broad category of wines often times called Super Tuscans. Most of these wines are Sangiovese based with the addition of other varietals such as Cabernet Sauvignon or Merlot and all are unique blends that gives the winery much more flexibility with regard to the more stringent Goria DOC and DOCG designations.
Today’s selection is 80% Sangiovese and 20% Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot grapes from the famed Chianti Classico region.
Wine Spies Tasting Profile:
Look – Dark garnet that lightens slightly to deep ruby red along its edges. Brilliantly clear with ruby streaks when held to the light and when swirled, random clusters of fast thin legs descend to the wine below.
Smell – Fruit forward and redolent with bright aromas of smokey and spiced dark berries including black and red cherry, blackberry and cassis with a healthy dose of black licorice and toasted oak. A touch of green herb and spiced pepper follows and sits just underneath.
Feel – A smooth and rich attack with finely grained and softly textured tannins that become more sturdy at mid palate. Lively and food friendly acidity and soft minerality surrounds the fruit and lasts long into the finish.
Taste – Rich, tangy and bright red and black cherry, blackberry and other dark fruit blends with smokey and toasted oak and black licorice notes. Soft herbal and sweet spice along with balsamic hints adds complexity without sacrificing drinkability. Once this wine opens and breathes, it becomes soft and rich while still retaining its food friendly structure.
Finish – Extremely long with the rich and tangy fruit lasting long over a framework of finely textured tannins and minerality and fresh acidity that dries the tongue and invites another sip.
Conclusion – The 2008 Tenuta Riseccoli Rinascita IGT Toscana Super Tuscan is a delicious and affordable Tuscan classic that is perfect for your everyday home-cooked Italian dinners. Great red and black fruit on the nose and palate with smokey and toasted oak, black licorice, spice and herbal notes blend with a sturdy and softly textured but not overbearing palate. Enjoy this wine tonight or cellar for the next few years.
Mission Report:
Wine Spies Vineyard Check:
The approximate location of *Tenuta Riseccoli * can be seen in this satellite photo.
What the Winery Says
Tenuta Riseccoli
About This Wine:
Rinascita, which is the Italian word for “rebirth” and also a play on the Italian word for Renaissance (the period during which Tuscany excelled through its artistic and cultutal development), is made from the younger vines of Sangiovese on the RISECCOLI estate, with a small addition of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. It is “fruit-forward” in style, soft and graceful. Designed for early drinking, it will nonetheless show well over a period of 3 to 5 years. Medium-body and gentle with supple and attractive fruit.
About The Winery:
RISECCOLI was originally acquired as a working farm, not just with vineyards, but olive groves and orchards as well. The wines from the then existing vineyards were mostly for the private consumption of the Romanelli family and their closest friends in Florence. Nevertheless, Professor Romanelli soon took to modernising the estate, adopting the latest of viticultural and winemaking methods of the time. RISECCOLI rapidly became known for its quality wines, first in Tuscany, as demonstrated by the awards the estate has received dating as far back as 1927, and then beyond Italy’s borders.
More recently, the current owners, together with their team, have carried out several major transformations to the estate. This included restructuring the vineyards, improving the clonal selection and diversifying the grape varietals, the acquisition and replanting of new vineyards, and upgrading the winemaking techniques and cellar equipment. Through constant attention and investment in our viticulture and winemaking processes, we ensure that our wines continue to be recognized nationally and internationally as among the best of Tuscany. And we aim to remain known as one of the most interesting and quality-oriented small-scale wine producers in the Chianti Classico area.
At RISECCOLI, we take a very personal and artisanal approach to winemaking and have always enjoyed sharing our passion with those who take an interest in our wines.
Sangiovese provides the backbone to our Chianti Classico and also to our range of Tuscan red Indicazione Geografica Tipica (IGT) wines. We also use non-indigenous varieties in specific circumstances, always allowing each vintage to reveal the full potential of the unique RISECCOLI terroir.
The French influence in our family (with the origins of the Faure family being in Bordeaux) allows us to use French grape varieties with confidence. This results in the wonderful blends of our IGT cuvées, for the sheer enjoyment of many aficionados around the world.
We seek to make wines that are approachable for early drinking. Yet, our Chianti Classico and IGT cuvées can also be cellared for enjoyment over the years to come.
All of our wines aim to show intensity of fruit as well as precision, balance, elegance and finesse. We specifically limit the proportion of wine that comes into direct contact with the oak in our cellars in order to enhance the purity and fruit structure.
Practicing viticulture in the most eco-friendly manner, our procedures are inspired from principles of viticulture raisonnée and show the utmost respect to the soil, the vines and the beautiful Tuscan countryside around us.
We believe that our winemaking approach through integrity and innovation is setting standards for wineries which share our values.
Technical Analysis:
Region: Chianti Classico
Type: IGT Toscana
Grapes: 80% Sangiovese, 20% Merlot & Cabernet Sauvignon.
Alcohol: 13.5%
