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The Masseto 2020 - Tenuta dell Ornellaia (1-bottle OWC).

Masseto
Masseto is a famed single-vineyard, Super Tuscan wine label produced from a site in Bolgheri, on the Tuscan coast, planted entirely to Merlot. It is one of the most famous Super Tuscan wines and is made by Tenuta dell'Ornellaia. The wine is known for its aromatic complexity, opulent fruit and tannic structure, and is consistently regarded as one of the top wines in the world with auction prices to match. It is classified as IGT Toscana.

The 6.6-hectare (16.3-acre) site, a former clay quarry, was identified by famed American enologist André Tchelistcheff as having great potential for Merlot. This is due to its high content of compact clay, particularly in the central portion, with more pebble- and sand-based soils in the upper and lower portions.

The vineyard is managed in small plots and, despite its modest size, the harvest can take up to a month. The wines were initially produced in an old farmhouse although in 2019 a newly designed, underground winery was unveiled to the press.

Bunch selection takes place in the vineyard with further berry sorting after destemming, Masseto's fermentation takes place in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks.

The base wines are then aged in medium-toast French oak barrels for about a year. After blending, the wine is aged for another year.

Masseto was first released in 1984 to immediate acclaim. Today, production totals around 35,000 bottles a year and a second wine – Massetino – has been produced since 2017 from barrels that are not selected for the flagship wine.

As with Ornellaia, Masseto has been owned by the Frescobaldis since 2005. The famous Bordeaux-based winemaker and consultant enologist Michel Rolland has been consultant at the property since the death of Tchelistcheff in 1994.

Robert Parker/Wine Advocate review
The 2020 Masseto now sees new DNA with a touch of Cabernet Franc added to this celebrated Merlot-based icon wine. This is a vintage of enormous richness and density, and everything about the wine is taken up a notch or two (including the bottle glass weight and the 15% alcohol content). But Axel Heinz and his team are well prepared for the hot vintages like 2020, and changes to farming and canopy management ensure even ripening. This wine is always hard to analyze in its youth. It needs many more years to soften and flesh out. Give it time: 96+ Parker Points.
Reviewed by Monica Larner from Robert Parker/Wine Advocate.