Critic Scores:

• 91 – Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate
• 91 – Wine Spectator

Crafted under the early foundational guidance of legendary enologist Giacomo Tachis, this landmark Super Tuscan expresses the power and depth of international varieties planted within the historic maritime soils of southern Montalcino.

The 1998 growing season across Tuscany was characterized by a dry, hot late summer that permitted optimal phenolic ripeness, allowing thick-skinned Bordeaux varietals to develop impressive texture and density.

Presenting an intense, deep ruby-to-purple hue with a mature brick rim, the wine projects a rich, highly sophisticated bouquet woven with ripe dark fruit, blackcurrant, and subtle hints of lavender, fresh herbs, and toasted wood.

On the palate, it exhibits a medium-to-full-bodied structure where the robust, chewy tannins have beautifully softened into a velvety coat over nearly three decades of careful cellaring.

Balanced by a supple, fully integrated acidity, the dark fruit core shifts gracefully into savory, briny complexities before tapering into a remarkably long, persistent finish. Serving as the primary critical reference, the historical evaluation from Robert Parker's Wine Advocate celebrates its outstanding presence and scale, officially logging it as an outstanding achievement that delivers an "excellent nose of jammy blackberries, cassis" and smoke.