Antinori and the Super Tuscans

Mukund Padmanabhan

Five years ago, I tasted my first legendary Super Tuscan when Alessia Antinori - descended from 25 generations of the Antinori family and one of three sisters who run Italy’s most famous winemaking business – showcased her Tignanello over lunch. There were some other wines served up as well, which if I recall correctly, included a Chianti and a Valpolicella; not surprisingly, however, the entire conversation revolved around Tignanello and the growth of the Super Tuscans.

The discussion was along very similar lines when Guido Vannuchi, Export Director for Antinori, showcased a different set of wines at a dinner at the Hyatt Regency Chennai earlier this month. The Tignanello was not on the list but standing in was another first-rate if less famous Super Tuscan, the Guada al Tasso. At one point, the conversation touched upon which Italian wines would qualify as iconic, defined by the measure of fame they have achieved around the world. Interestingly, in Vannuchi’s estimation, of six iconic Italian wines, five were Super Tuscans, the ‘odd man out’ being one of Gaja’s single-vineyard Barbarescos.

There is a story here, one that relates to Antinori and its central place in the phenomenon of the rise of the Super Tuscans, the breed of wines that were a result of experiments with the use of ‘international’ (read French or non-traditional) grapes to make wines in Tuscany. When they began to be marketed four decades ago, Super Tuscans did more than catch the fancy of the international market; they were responsible for the huge revival in Italian wines themselves, particularly Chiantis. Producers of Chiantis were persuaded by the success of Super Tuscans to use new Sangiovese clones and superior vinification techniques to dramatically transform their products and shed the image of Chianti “trattoria plonk” or “pizza wines”.

The Antinori family began experimenting with Bordeaux grape varieties in the 1920s. But the first Super Tuscan to be marketed was Sassicaia. The Antinori connection, however, was not entirely absent. Sassicaia was created by a relative of the Antinoris; they also marketed it first vintage. However, it was Tignanello vintage in 1975, barriqued and made entirely from reds, which really caught market attention and launched the Super Tuscan phenomenon.

The Antinori-Super Tuscan connection goes deeper with Solaia, another iconic wine, grown and produced in the Chianti Classico region. The Guado al Tasso, like the Sassicaia, comes from nearby Bolgheri – home to another of Guido Vannachi’s five iconic Super Tuscan wines, the Ornellaia. The bottle I drink is not as heavy-bodied or as resonant of the typical power of a Super Tuscan as I expect – smoky and well-structured it was, but the wine was more suggestive of cheerful Italy than the brooding power of the Medoc reds the Super Tuscans were meant to evoke.

Surprisingly, it was the splendid Chianti Classico served up that evening that called Bordeaux to mind. Cabernet Sauvignon makes up only 10 per cent of the blend, but its influence is distinct in making what is essentially an internationally styled wine.

So then, an Italian Super Tuscan and a French Chianti – the world of wine is never without its surprises.

mukund.p@thehindu.co.in

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