2021 Ornellaia Masseto IGT

100 Points - Antonio Galloni MW, Vinous
The 2021 Masseto is a stunner. It also shows how much the estate has evolved in recent years. I was reminded of that recently when I drank the 2001, considered by many observers, including this one, to be one of the greatest wines ever made here. The 2021 represents a move towards a more refined style. There’s less of the bombastic intensity and extraction that were once the norm here. I remember young vintages that were impossible to taste young. The 2021, on the other hand, is an absolute delight. Crushed flowers, spice, blood orange and bright, red-toned fruit all grace the palate. Floral aromatics and saline underpinnings are at times reminiscent of the Cabernet Franc found in the 2019 and 2020, but the 2021 is back to the classic 100% Merlot. Readers will find a Masseto built on linear energy more than volume. The 2021 is quite simply the most exquisite, refined young Masseto I have ever tasted. Aging was 24 months in 100% new French oak.

2021 was a hot vintage, but you can feel plenty of freshness in this wine. It has a lovely perfume of crushed hedgerow berries and some herbal notes, while in the mouth it's intense, ferrous and stony, with soft, silky tannins, some creamy cherry on the mid-palate, and intense acidity which keeps things moving. The textural detail is sublime and the verticality and fruit sapidity on display here is nothing short of breathtaking. ‘For me, it's one of the best vintages in the history of Masseto‘, states production director, Marco Balsimelli.

Bright, intense ruby with purple shimmer. Very appealing and rich nose of cassis, blackberry, dark tobacco and graphite. Dense, very concentrated tannins, builds up towards good depth, lots of dark berryish fruit, salty and with great length on the finish.

Our entire adult lives are spent trying to reclaim the wonder of our childhood—the enchantment of Disney World, the legend of Santa Claus, the belief in miracles that is slowly eroded with age. Masseto is always a wine that brings back that magic, but Gaia allows you to get up out of your seat and watch her sleight of hand from a nose-length. I dare you to figure out how she does it, and I defy you not to gasp with delight at the reveal. Drink now or hold until you next feel your faith faltering.