ARE SUPER TUSCANS ON THEIR WAY OUT? THE MAGAZINE WINE ENTHUSIAST POSES THIS QUESTION. ITS EUROPEAN CORRESPONDENT MONICA LARNER EXPLAINS: THE US APPRECIATES TERRITORIAL WINES BUT IN ITALY THERE ARE THOSE WHO STILL CELEBRATE THE SUPER TUSCAN TRIUMPHS

Are Super Tuscans on their way out? Could the family of wines that includes world champions, as well as being responsible for the rebirth of Italian enology as a whole, be waning in popularity? The most complex wines that range from Sassicaia to Ornellaia, can be classified as DOC or as IGT, that can be obtained from single grape varieties or from blends (mainly Sangiovese, Merlot, and Cabernet Sauvignon, but also international varietals like Syrah). There are those who think that these wines, which better express a winemaker’s style rather than his territory, have reached the end of the line. Or, at least, this is the provocatory question that has been asked by “Wine Enthusiast”, one of the most authoritative wine magazines from the U.S.
“We wanted to write a great article on Super Tuscans” - explained the magazine’s European correspondent, Monica Larner, in an interview with WineNews.tv - “but once in front of the 300 samples to taste, we began asking ourselves what these wines mean today, which, among other things, have prices that vary from between 12 and 300 dollars”.
Thus Larner posed this question to producers who, in response, were not so inclined to speak of Super Tuscans but rather of Bolgheri, Sant’Antimo and the new denomination wines that are arriving from these areas that are most famous for Super Tuscan production. According to Monica Larner, this is also due to the fact that producers have understood that the American market, fundamental for exports, is becoming increasingly more sophisticated, and they know increasingly more about Italy, and therefore, they are buying wine based on the territory.
And because of this, Larner began to question what Super Tuscan actually meant. “From this, the title of the article became ‘Arrivederci Supertuscan’, or rather, it might no longer be the moment to use this generic term, but to point towards specific territories”. But according many other experts, Super Tuscans are, and will remain a cornerstone of the Tuscan, Italian, and international wine world, and its successes are still being celebrating. Successes that, according to some, have also opened the way for the confirmation of other Tuscan territories like Montalcino, Chianti Classico, and Montepulciano, as well as making it possible for different winemaking styles to be discovered with the IGT denomination, which is a less restrictive discipline.
For those who are still Super Tuscan enthusiasts there was an interesting event dedicated to these wines, held on March 3rd at the Wine Store “Osterie Moderne” in Campodarsegno (Padua), where 22 of the best known Super Tuscans were tasted. These top names were divided into two generations: the first, made of international blends as well as autochthonous blends; the second, was made up of pure, single varietals.
The 22 Super Tuscans that were tasted:
Maremma Toscana 1 - Rocca di Frassinello 2004 Rocca di Frassinello Montepulciano
2 - Asinone 2004 Nobile Montepulciano Poliziano
3 - Salco Evoluzione 2001 Nobile Montepulciano Salcheto Chianti Classico
4 - Flaccianello 2004 Fontodi
5 - Fontalloro 2004 Felsina
6 - Casalferro 2003 Barone Ricasoli
7 - Il Blu 2004 Brancaia
8 - Montevertine 2004 Montevertine
9 - Le Pergole Torte 2004 Montevertine
10 - Tignanello 2004 Antinori
11 - Cepparello 2003 Isole e Olena
12 - Siepi 2003 Mazzei
13 - I Sodi di San Niccolò 2001 Castellare di Castellina Castellina Marittima
14 - Lupicaia 2003 Castello del Terriccio
15 - Castello del Terriccio 2003 Castello del Terriccio Bolgheri
16 - Pino di Biserno 2005 Tenuta di Biserno
17 - Grattamacco Bolgheri Superiore 2004 Tenuta Grattamacco
18 - Sassicaia 2004 Tenuta San Guido
19 - Ornellaia Bolgheri Superiore 2004 Tenuta dell’Ornellaia
20 - Guado al Tasso Bolgheri Superiore 2003 Antinori
21 - Paleo Bolgheri Superiore 2003 Le Macchiole
22 - Solaia 2003 Antinori
Info: www.osteriemoderne.it