Haut Brion of Tuscany/ Super Value 97pt Cabernet/ Huge follow up to 96pt Chianti Classico

We have Special Offers for you on one of the iconic wines from all of Tuscany! These are highly allocated but a steal for the price and they are all from the landmark Tuscany estate Isole e Olena. Isole e Olena is a 125-acre estate in Val d’Elsa, Tuscany, in Italy. The estate was formed in the 1950s when two adjoining estates, the Isole and the Olena, were purchased by the de Marchi family. Located in the heart of the Chianti Classico region, the estate today is run by Paolo de Marchi and his family. Known for their Chianti’s, the estate also produces a highly regarded Cabernet Sauvignon. During the 1960’s the time many producers abandoned the native grape of Sangiovese in favor of making "Super Tuscans" – Sangiovese blended with Cabernet or other international grape varieties.  Paolo did not do this and his pure Sangiovese wine “Cepparello” is considered one of the most dramatic expressions of Chianti to this day and is an original and true “Super Tuscan”.

Take a look at the reviews of these great wines:
While every wine Isole e Olena produces is of the highest quality and standard, it is the Sangiovese-based wines that are the most famous and the Cepparello (100% Sangiovese) is the flagship of the estate.

Cepparello has been called the “Haut-Brion of Tuscany’s high-end, pure Sangioveses” by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. While the estate is obviously different to the great Pessac-Leognan Chateau you can see similarities with Haut Brion by it's pure elegance and complexity as well as it's beautiful aromas and flavors of dark fruits, ripe cherries with dried flowers and sweet tobacco. This is a body of wine that is complete and polished. 2010 is an extraordinary vintage in Tuscany and you do not want to pass up on one of the most iconic wines in Tuscany.

“Isole e Olena's 2010 Cepparello is magnificent. In particular, I admire the way the wine fleshes out in all directions, with seemingly endless layers of dark, mineral-infused berry, plum and pomegranate notes. A primal wine in need of significant cellaring, the 2010 is easily one of the highlights of the year. Bright, saline notes support the precise finish. Today, the 2010 is naturally quite backward and undeveloped, but it should be a gem in another 5-10 years. This is an especially dark, structured Cepparello built for the cellar. The 2010 brightens up with time in the glass, but it remains one of the darker, more brooding wines made in the estate's history.” 96+ points Antonio Galloni, Vinous

The extraordinary 2010 Cepparello (100% Sangiovese aged up to 18 months in oak, one-third new) presents fine nuances of red berry, cherry, spice, tar, licorice, wet earth and forest leaf. The bouquet is very elegant but this wine delivers power too with tight structure that immediately wraps around the palate. Somewhere in the crossroads between tradition and modernity, Cepparello is a stunning wine.  95 points Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 

Not to be outdone the 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione De Marchi is an absolute rockstar as it is the best Isole e Olena has produced yet. Very well structured with power and elegance everything you would want from a great Cabernet. You won't find another Cabernet of this stature at this price!

The demand on this is huge as we have had a pre-arrival waiting list for months. Unfortunately it is still very allocated. While we were able to get a healthy allocation this will still go in a blink of an eye.

Antoni Galloni Vinous gave it 97+ points “At the beginning of what promises to be a long drinking window, the 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione De Marchi is stunning. Savory herbs, tar, licorice, cassis, graphite and melted road tar seduce the intellectual and hedonistic senses in a wine that has everything. A vibrant, powerful, structured wine underpinned by intense saline notes, the 2008 possesses remarkable finesse and fabulous overall balance. This is another fabulous wine from Paolo De Marchi.”

And you can’t forget about this Chianti Classico. Isole e Olena is know for it’s Sangiovese and this Chianti Classico will not disappoint. This received huge scores of 96 points by Decanter and Wine Enthusiast last year and we have just received the 2011 vintage a great follow up. 

This has already received 93 points by Wine Enthusiast: "Alluring aromas of blue flower, meat juices, woodland berries and spice jump out of the glass after pouring this luminous blend of 80% Sangiovese, 15% Canaiolo and 5% Syrah. The juicy palate offers a core of dark cherry layered with savory black pepper, cinnamon and clove alongside assertive but elegant tannins. This already shows nice depth but hold a few more years for more complexity."

As well as 90 point scores by both James Suckling and Antonio Galloni

"There's a spicy, light earth and dried cherry character here. Medium body, good fruit and a fresh finish. Bright and citrusy. Delicious young wine. Drink now" 90 Points James Suckling

"Sweet raspberry, rose petal and spice notes wrap around the palate in the 2011 Chianti Classico. Soft and enveloping, the 2011 is highly typical of the vintage. In 2011 proprietor Paolo De Marchi used about 10% Syrah to give the wine a little more freshness. Savory herbs, tobacco and licorice add nuance on the finish. The 2011 is an outstanding wine. I would drink the 2011 now and give the 2010 another year in bottle." 90 Points Antonio Galloni,Vinous 

I would not pass up the opportunity to purchase these great wines as they are some of the finest wines you will find in all of Tuscany. Free Shipping on orders of Isole e Olena wines from this newsletter of $250 or more. 

Isole e Olena
The name  Isole e Olena was conceived in the 1950’s when two adjoining estates, “ISOLE” and “OLENA” were purchased by the De Marchi family and were combined to form one. The history of both estates dates back many hundreds of years, and the earliest documentation of the village of Olena as far back as the 12th Century. Isole was founded as an agricultural farm in the 1700’s by the Elmi family who retained control of it until the present century. Isole is now the center of production for the Isole e Olena estate.

In the beginning of the 1950’s the De Marchi family began gradually phasing out the sharecropping system. New specialized vineyards were planted and the wine cellars were expanded. Today the Isole e Olena estate is run by Paolo De Marchi and his family. Paolo comes from a family with three generations of winemaking experience in the northern section of Piedmont. He was raised in close contact with the wine world as he has always enthusiastically followed the development of his grandfather’s estate located in the village of Lessona, west of Gattinara, PROPRIETA’ SPERINO, where Nebbiolo is is grown to produce the Lessona DOC. Paolo is well versed in the different wine regions of the world. He is a graduate of the Agriculture University of Turin (1976) with a specialization in Enology. As preparation for his thesis work he spent six months in California researching the evolution of the California wine industry. In 1980 he worked for the Istituto Sperimentale per L’Enologia di Asti.

Today he maintains contacts with the various Enology Faculties of the universities in Italy and abroad, and every vintage he tutors trainee students. Likewise, he continues to travel the wine regions of the world in an effort to foster an exchange of ideas, techniques and enthusiasm.

In 1976 Paolo began managing the estate with the goal in mind of combining his technical training with a willingness to experiment in order to firmly establish the winery as one of the forerunners in Chianti. At that time the cellars were modernized and experimental vineyard plots were planted.

The traditional 4-grape Chianti Classico blend was gradually altered to diminish white grapes until their complete elimination. Thus the Isole e Olena Chianti evolved from being a light, young wine to the fuller-bodied it is wine of today worthy of cellar aging. Simultaneously Paolo began experimenting with the production of a wine made exclusively of Sangiovese grapes. His efforts in this direction have yielded the resultant wine named Cepparello. In 1980 he produced the first Cepparello.

The Chianti hills are located in Tuscany in the central part of Italy and is the heart of the production of Chianti Classico wine. It has for many centuries beckoned artists and writers who fall under the spell of the subtle beauty of its rolling hillsides covered with woods, vineyards and olive groves. The high concentration of hills, each one slightly unique, creates thousands of microclimates which contribute in part to the wide diversity in style amongst the Chianti producers. Each microclimate is influenced by the varying factors of soil, exposure to the sun, rainfall, wind and altitude.

The Isole e Olena estate is located on the western slope of the Chianti Classico hills exactly half way between Florence and Siena. It stands at an altitude of 1300 feet above sea level and receives an average of 35 inches of rainfall annually. The soil is a mixture of limestone, clay slates and sandstone, which allows sufficient drainage in times of heavy rains and the retention of moisture in times of drought.

All the wines are produced only from the grapes grown on the estates 50 hectars of vineyards. In the past 25 years the vineyards have gone through an extensive replanting project involving research on estate clonal selection, density of plantation (5.000-7.500 vines/hectare), soil mapping and vineyard management technics. This project has placed Isole e Olena in the small group of estates leading the Chianti renaissance.

Free Shipping on orders of Isole e Olena wines from this newsletter of $250 or more. 

Isole e Olena Cepparello 2010
Isole e Olena's 2010 Cepparello is magnificent. In particular, I admire the way the wine fleshes out in all directions, with seemingly endless layers of dark, mineral-infused berry, plum and pomegranate notes. A primal wine in need of significant cellaring, the 2010 is easily one of the highlights of the year. Bright, saline notes support the precise finish. Today, the 2010 is naturally quite backward and undeveloped, but it should be a gem in another 5-10 years. This is an especially dark, structured Cepparello built for the cellar. The 2010 brightens up with time in the glass, but it remains one of the darker, more brooding wines made in the estate's history.

Antonio Galloni, Vinous 96 points:
The extraordinary 2010 Cepparello (100% Sangiovese aged up to 18 months in oak, one-third new) presents fine nuances of red berry, cherry, spice, tar, licorice, wet earth and forest leaf. The bouquet is very elegant but this wine delivers power too with tight structure that immediately wraps around the palate. Somewhere in the crossroads between tradition and modernity, Cepparello is a stunning wine. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2030.

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 95 points
In the late 1960s Paolo bought the estate that was to become Isole e Olena from his father’s side of the family.  The estate, like all of Tuscany, was a mess.  As Paolo said to me, Chianti in the 1960s went from a medieval, share-cropping economy to an international one in 15 years.  During this time many producers abandoned the native grape of Sangiovese in favor of making Super Tuscans – Sangiovese blended with Cabernet or other international grape varieties.  Paolo did not do this and his pure Sangiovese wine “Cepparello” is considered one of the most dramatic expressions of Chianti to this day.

Isole e Olena Cabernet Sauvignon "Collezione De Marchi" 2008
Antoni Galloni Vinous 97+ points 
At the beginning of what promises to be a long drinking window, the 2008 Cabernet Sauvignon Collezione De Marchi is stunning. Savory herbs, tar, licorice, cassis, graphite andmelted road tar seduce the intellectual and hedonistic senses in a wine that has everything. A vibrant, powerful, structured wine underpinned by intense saline notes, the 2008 possesses remarkable finesse and fabulous overall balance. This is another fabulous wine from Paolo De Marchi.

Isole e Olena Chianti Classico 2011
Wine Enthusiast 93 points
Alluring aromas of blue flower, meat juices, woodland berries and spice jump out of the glass after pouring this luminous blend of 80% Sangiovese, 15% Canaiolo and 5% Syrah. The juicy palate offers a core of dark cherry layered with savory black pepper, cinnamon and clove alongside assertive but elegant tannins. This already shows nice depth but hold a few more years for more complexity.

James Suckling 90 points
"There's a spicy, light earth and dried cherry character here. Medium body, good fruit and a fresh finish. Bright and citrusy. Delicious young wine. Drink now" 

Antonio Galloni,Vinous 90 points
Sweet raspberry, rose petal and spice notes wrap around the palate in the 2011 Chianti Classico. Soft and enveloping, the 2011 is highly typical of the vintage. In 2011 proprietor Paolo De Marchi used about 10% Syrah to give the wine a little more freshness. Savory herbs, tobacco and licorice add nuance on the finish. The 2011 is an outstanding wine. I would drink the 2011 now and give the 2010 another year in bottle.