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Primo and Co 'The Tuscan' 2009
$33.95
Producer: Primo Estate The third release of 'The Tuscan' is a blend of 83% Shiraz and 17% Sangiovese from two contrasting sub regions of Tuscany. Giampaolo Chiettini, the Italian enologist with whom we collaborate to produce 'The Tuscan', introduced us to a small Shiraz grower in the emerging region of Cortona in northeast Tuscany. Cortona has emerged as the pre-eminent Shiraz region of Italy due to the concentration and richness of fruit being produced. Sangiovese again came from the warm, coastal Maremma region in Tuscany. The vineyards are in the beautiful Val di Cornia with the island of Elba in plain view. We first experimented with blending Shiraz and Sangiovese in South Australia in 1998. We have always believed that some Sangiovese in a blend with Shiraz can temper the latter's natural juicy richness to make a savoury red that is a perfect match with olive oil based cuisine. We felt that a similar blend in Italy would work for the reverse reason. The tight tannins and acidity of Tuscan Sangiovese should benefit from an injection of spicy lushness from Shiraz. The wine spent 9 months in older French oak barriques to marry the varietal components. The result is a wine with spicy fruit characters fused with lashings of cherry. There's a subtle earthiness about it too and a long savoury finish. |
