Fontodi Flaccianello 2006 Magnum

Lobenberg: Der Flaccianello ist vermutlich der perfekteste Finesseausdruck aller reinsortigen Sangioveseweine aus dem Chiantigebiet. Ein Chateau Cheval Blanc Saint Emilion aus der Toscana! 95+96/100

Wine Spectator: Shows excellent color and richness for a Sangiovese, with aromas of sultana, coffee, toasty oak and vanilla bean. Full-bodied, with masses of fruit and chewy tannins. The concentration and depth of fruit and layers of tannins leave me speechless. A blockbuster. 99/100

James Suckling: This is an incredible wine. It shows aromas of violets, berries, and licorice that show fresh porcini mushrooms as well. It’s full and very balanced with fresh acidity and wonderful length. Fabulous. Give it time still, if you can hold yourself back from drinking it. 99/100

Robert Parker: The 2006 Flaccianello della Pieve is monumental, as it has been since the very beginning. Smoke, black cherries, plums, incense, licorice and tar are some of the many notes that burst from the glass in this powerful wine. The 2006 has fruit and structure to burn. It is going to be an absolutely fabulous wine to follow over the coming years, but patience is key. A huge, explosive finish rounds things out in style. Anticipated maturity: 2016-2036. This complete vertical of Fontodi’s flagship 100% Sangiovese Flaccianello was yet another of the remarkable tastings of my recent trip to Tuscany. Flaccianello is an interesting wine because the quality level that is the norm today only really starts around 2001. Prior to that the wines were very good, and sometimes even better than that, but not profound. In 2001 proprietor Giovanni Manetti made the decision to focus on his estate’s best fruit rather than making Flaccianello as a single-vineyard wine. Since then, Flaccianello has routinely been among the most exciting wines in Tuscany. Much of the fruit that now goes into Flaccianello comes from vineyards in the Pecille sub-zone of Panzano with a full southern exposure. Today Flaccianello is 100% Sangiovese, but the first vintages up to and including 1984 have 15% white grapes, as was common at the time. The early vintages up until 1990 spent about one year in French oak barrels, 50% new. In the mid-1990s Manetti increased the period of barrel aging to 18 months with the 1997, and then to 24 months with the 2006. Today the percentage of new barrels is close to 100%. 97/100

Falstaff: Kraftvolles Rubin. Zeigt sich in der Nase sehr dicht und fleischig, reife Brombeeren, Cassis, Sandelholz, dunkler Nougat. Wunderbar satt, dichtmaschiges, verwobenes Tannin, feiner süßer Kern mit viel Schmelz, trotz Kraft auch schöne Saftigkeit, legt im Finale noch zu, beeindruckend! 97/100

Jancis Robinson: Very deep crimson. Volcanically explosive on the nose. Tight and dry on the finish. Real drive. Very linear with a pretty dry finish. Desperately needs food – so it's lucky I'm enjoying this at the famous Dario meat restaurant in Panzano. 18/20