Cervaro della Sala 2023 Antinori

Tasting Note Cervaro della Sala 2023

First impression: lift. The Cervaro della Sala 2023 opens with notes of citrus peel, white peach, and almond skin. There are chalky, salty flavors under the limestone. On the palate, there is oak, but more brioche than vanilla. The acidity is firm and the finish is long and savory. Drinkable now if you leave it, but really needs 2-3 years of bottle aging.

Grape Varieties

Cervaro is not varietal Chardonnay. The blend is approximately

• 80-90% Chardonnay, providing body, stone fruit, and texture.
• 10-20% is Umbrian white grape, Grechetto, which provides the backbone of almond notes, grip, and acidity.

Why add Grechetto? Because pure Chardonnay runs the risk of becoming too round at this point. Grechette gives Chardonnay a hardness that roots it in Umbria.

Cellaring Potential

The 2023 will age until 2027 and drink until 2035. The acidity and minerality from the limestone carry this wine. Over time, citrus and peach aromas give way to honey, hazelnut and waxy nuances. 12-14°C for storage.

About Antinori

The Marchesi Antinori family's wine business dates back to 1385, when Giovanni di Piero Antinori joined the Arte Fiorentina dei Vinattieri, or the Florentine Winemakers' Guild. The family's history, however, goes back much further. Records indicate that around 1180, Rinuccio di Antinoro was making wine in Castello di Combiate, north of Florence. In 1202, when the castle was destroyed, the family relocated to Florence, and for a time, the wine business took a back seat to the silk trade and banking.

For centuries, the wine business remained a sideline compared to silk, wool, and banking. Then came Piero Antinori, the 26th generation, who, together with oenologist Giacomo Tachis, broke with the traditions of Chianti Classico. They planted Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc at Val di Pesa and aged the wine in barriques, but because regulations at the time left them no other choice, it was sold simply as a table wine. That was Tignanello, released in 1974, followed by Solaia in 1978 and Guado Al Tasso, produced at Bolgheri, in 1990. The headquarters is located in Bargino, about 30 kilometers south of Florence, set between Florence and Siena. Both Classic Chianti and Super Tuscans are wines produced at the same winery.

Terroir & Climate

Castello della Sala is bottled as an Umbria IGT due to a blend that does not follow traditional rules. The vineyards are between 220 and 470 meters above sea level, providing the cool nights necessary for the Chardonnay to retain its acidity. The soil is clay and limestone, studded with Pliocene marine fossils. This fossilized limestone gives the wine its salty, chalky flavor. Without it, Cervaro would be a very different wine.

Winemaking

The tricky part of the cervaro is the separation. Antinori ferments part of the juice in stainless steel and part in French oak barriques (225 liter barrels). Malolactic fermentation takes place in the barrels, which tempers the malolactic acidity and gives the wine a creamy color in the middle of the palette. The wine is then aged in a mixture of new and used barrels for about 6 months and then aged in the bottle for at least 6 months before release. The key is balance. Enough oak to give texture and toast, but not so much that it smooths out the fruit or hides the underlying limestone.

Food Pairing

This wine is oriented toward rich food, but the acidity keeps it lively. Taste:

• Pasta stranguzzi, black truffle norcia, traditional Umbrian dishes.
• Roasted chicken with lemon and herbs
• Grilled lake fish from Trasimeno or meaty white fish in butter sauce.
• Aged pecorino, a perfect match for the saltiness of the wine and the cheese.

Serve at 10-12°C. If the bottle is not aged, no decanting is necessary.