Isole e Olena Syrah 2018

“The 2018 Syrah Collezione Privata is a wine of extreme purity and nuance. Medium in body and beautifully focused, the 2018 bristles with energy. Blackberry, lavender, spice and espresso all build in the glass. More than anything else, I am so struck by the wine’s precision. The 2018 needs a number of years to be at its most expressive. The aromatics especially need to open. And yet all the elements are there. What a wine! Drinking window: 2026-2038. 96 points

Paolo De Marchi showed me a stellar set of wines this year. What else is new? De Marchi describes 2018 as a growing season with abundant rain in spring, late summer and during harvest that required quite a bit of selection, whereas 2019 was warmer, but with no spikes. That is certainly how the wines taste. Both the 2018 Chianti Classico and Cepparello are a bit lithe, while the 2019 editions show more flesh and radiance. Wines from international varieties are way out of fashion these days, but I would be remiss if I did not mention the supremely high level of the Chardonnay, Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon at Isole e Olena.”

Antonio Galloni, Vinous (09/21)