Producer

Castello di Ama

I have reviewed three wines from Castello di Ama, from the 2018 to 2021 vintages, across Chianti Classico and Toscana. Most are Merlot. Scores range from 97 to 100, averaging 98; the highest is the 2021 Castello di Ama “L’Apparita” Toscana (100 points).

Castello di Ama, in the high hills of Gaiole in Chianti, is both a temple of Chianti Classico and an open-air museum of contemporary art. Directed by Marco Pallanti, who has spent decades identifying the best parcels of the property, the estate has been a benchmark for single-vineyard Chianti since the 1980s. Its style is one of supreme elegance and aromatic precision, often described as Burgundian.

The Gran Selezione wines are the heart of Ama. Vigneto Bellavista, the most classic and prized plot, blends Sangiovese with a share of Merlot — 80 and 20 per cent in 2018 — on galestro-rich soils, and is powerful, polished and built for longevity. La Casuccia is the other single vineyard, and San Lorenzo draws on the estate’s best Sangiovese from historic sites including Bellavista and Casuccia, with a touch of Merlot and Malvasia Nera; in the exceptional 2021 vintage it was one of the great values in Tuscany.

L’Apparita, first produced in 1985, proved that Gaiole’s high clay-limestone terroir could make a 100% Merlot to rival the world’s best. Dense, velvety and fresh, it is one of Italy’s most iconic single-varietal wines.