Massetino 2019 (750ML)

94-96 WA / 95 JS / 94 VM / 94 DE / 93 JA / 93 WS / 16+ JR

Tasted before bottling, the 2019 Massetino is shaping up beautifully. This is the third vintage made of the Merlot-based wine enhanced with a small part of Cabernet Franc. The Cabernet Franc is what distinguishes this euphemistically diminutive expression of Masseto, and it is its distinctive vinous signature. The 2019 vintage is soft and pliant but also incredibly rich and layered. It offers generous black fruit with ripe cherry and blackberry. Spice, tobacco and campfire ash fill in the rear and build the aromatic profile of this wine that is already stacked tall and proud. We still need to see how the 2019 plays out in the bottle, and I am especially interested to gauge how the thick and rich fruit concentration works against the less pronounced acidity of the vintage. - Monica Larner, Wine Advocate

Very attractive aromas of currants, spices and sweet tobacco with some graphite and slate. Full-bodied with a rich and rather dense mouth feel, plenty of fruit and a spicy, dark-chocolate aftertaste. A solid and sturdy second wine from Masseto. Try in 2023. - James Suckling

The 2019 Massetino is fabulous once again in 2019. The estate has really hit on to something with their second wine. Inky dark fruit, mocha, chocolate, lavender, pencil shavings, licorice and espresso all meld together in the glass. Massetino has all the richness of the Grand Vin, but less heft, which makes it more approachable. The 2019 is a rich wine, with 15.5% alcohol, but that is not especially evident. - Antonio Galloni, Vinous Media

This is only the third vintage of Masseto’s second wine, which shares the same pedigree as its sibling, and the second time it is being released on the Place after the 2018 debuted last year. The first time Cabernet Franc is used in the blend, which is completed by 94% Merlot, this has a lovely ripe quality to it with florality coming from the Cabernet. There are some serious tannins on the palate, with a touch of heat, spicy new oak and liquorice coming through the blackcurrant and berry fruit. Opulent and rich but balanced with fresh acidity. Malolactic fermentation takes place in barrel, with 50% new oak. After the first 12 month of aging the wine is blended and put back into barrels for a further three months before bottling. - Georgina Hindle, Decanter

Second year on the Place for the second wine of Masseto, from young vines. This is generous and easy to love,  powerful brambled fruits and juicy red cherry, rosemary and Tuscan underbrush spice. All plots are vinified   separately, wild yeast fermention, malo in barrel, with 50% new oak. Tiny quantities of this wine are made. - Jane Anson, Inside Bordeaux

Here's a plush, opulent, in-your-face kind of red, without being over the top. Toasty blackberry, black cherry and plum aromas and flavors ply the center, graced by leather, earth and tobacco accents. Dense, yet finishes long and light on its feet. Merlot and Cabernet Franc. Best from 2023 through 2033. 100 cases imported. - Wine Spectator

94% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc.
Deep ruby colour. Heady, chocolate-coated fruit dominates the nose. This is hedonistic but inviting, and the alcohol is admirably covered by fruit intensity. The palate follows in the same vein. This is muscular and rich in fruit, cassis, dark cherry and milk chocolate all come through. There are some wood tannins too, which are slightly grainy, but the overall balance remains. Broad-shouldered to the finish. - Tom Parker MW, Jancis Robinson .com