2019 Tenuta Sette Ponti Sette Tuscany 6pk 6x750ml

Tenuta Sette Ponti sits in the heart of Bolgheri, less than a mile from Ornellaia and Sassicaia — the Super Tuscan legends that put this stretch of coast on the map. Owner Antonio Moretti's 5.5-hectare Podere Orma vineyard is planted on deep gravel and clay soils with a touch of sand, the kind of terroir Bordeaux varietals dream about. The Tyrrhenian Sea keeps the climate balanced, and the vines respond.

The 2019 vintage in Tuscany opened with a rainy, mild winter that eased into a warm spring at the end of March. Budding was uniform, production rich. The summer ran hot and breezy, interspersed with strategic rains that gave the vines balance. September delivered excellent ripening conditions, and Merlot — the spine of this wine — expressed both fruit and complexity.

This is a 50% Merlot, 30% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc blend aged in French oak barriques and tonneaux. The wine opens with tobacco, sage, rosemary, and vibrant redcurrants, then builds into a full-bodied palate layered with cassis, geraniums, orange blossom, liquorice, and gunpowder. The tannins are fleshy and precisely integrated, the finish long and fresh. Aromas of blackberries, currants, minerals, violets, and graphite define the nose. On the palate: dark berries, chocolate, and a cornucopia of herbs.

James Suckling scored it a 97. Wine Spectator followed with a 94. This is the kind of wine that wins panel consensus — and the kind of wine that drinks well now but will develop beautifully through 2036.