2021 Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana, Tuscany

Intense and floral wine, full of restrained aromas, such as potpourri, together with vibrant red cherries, licorice, bergamot and lightly balsamic depth. The firm tannins and full body provide a velvety and extracted texture. Powerful wine, yet tight-knit and super polished. Refreshing with a tense, fruity finish. Super classic. Drink or hold.

99 points jamessuckling.com

One of Tuscany’s flagship wines, the Isole e Olena 2021 Cepparello immediately delivers ripe fruit flavours that are firm, even crunchy, and that bodes well for the future evolution of this classic vintage. The wine is packed with tart fruit flavours followed by balanced acidity. Compared to past vintages that are more extracted and dense, this edition is delightfully bright and transparent. I appreciation the age-worthy direction Cepparello is taking. Drink: 2025 - 2048

97 points robertparker.com   

Isole e Olena Cepparello Toscana IGT is a benchmark Super Tuscan and one of Italy’s greatest expressions of Sangiovese. Crafted entirely from 100 percent Sangiovese grown on the estate’s best hillside vineyards in Barberino Val d’Elsa, this wine captures both the soul of Chianti and the ambition of modern Tuscan winemaking.

Cepparello was first produced in 1980 by Paolo De Marchi, a visionary winemaker who challenged the rules of the time by bottling a pure Sangiovese outside the DOCG framework to push quality to its limits. The name "Cepparello" comes from a small stream that runs through the estate’s vineyards, and the wine has become a cult classic for its precision, longevity and Burgundian elegance.

The fruit is handpicked and sorted, then fermented in temperature-controlled tanks with regular pump-overs for gentle extraction. The wine matures for 18 to 20 months in French oak barriques, around one third new, followed by further bottle ageing before release.

The nose is beautifully aromatic with cherry, wild raspberry, rose petal and fresh herbs, layered with notes of cedar, tobacco, anise and crushed stone. The palate is medium to full-bodied, with a silky texture and perfectly woven tannins. It offers Sangiovese purity and drive, wrapped in a savoury, mineral core and finishing long and refined.

Pair it with Tuscan-style roast lamb, bistecca alla Fiorentina, wild mushroom risotto or truffle pecorino. This wine will cellar gracefully for 15 to 20 years, evolving into something truly profound.