Masseto Tuscany 2018

This is extremely perfumed with flowers, cherries and blackberries, as well as hints of lavender. It’s full-bodied, yet so refined, linear and racy. Pure silk. The texture is every so polished. Succulent and subtle fruit at the end. New wood showing now. A sophisticated Masseto that shows balance and harmony. Builds with tannins at the finish. Needs time to come completely together. Try after 2025.

The 2018 Masseto is the vintage surprise few of us could have expected. The season saw rains just before harvest, and vintners were forced into dramatic last-minute decisions and risks. The expert team at Masseto navigated those challenges with deft precision in this first vintage executed in the new winery that is now fully dedicated and engineered to fulfill the expectations of this iconic Merlot from coastal Tuscany. The new gravity-flow building has angular concrete fermentors and an old-fashioned basket press. Dark fruit and ripe blackberry bleed slowly into spice, leather, chocolate and sweet tobacco. The wine shows generous extraction and concentration; however, it remains light and lifted throughout. Welcome Masseto into your new home.

Rich and solidly built, this red features black cherry, plum, cedar, vanilla and toasty oak aromas and flavors. A line of refined tannins marks the finish, yet overall this is balanced, remarkably fresh and expressive. Merlot. Best from 2024 through 2043.