Solaia, Antinori 2021 75cl

Solaia is the wine Antinori make when the vintage is generous enough to justify it. Cabernet Sauvignon–led, with Sangiovese and a little Cabernet Franc, it comes from a sun-drenched slope beside the Tignanello vineyard — solaia means the sunny place — and the 2021 is a benchmark for what Tuscany can achieve at the very top.

First made in 1978, Solaia inverts the Tignanello formula: here Cabernet takes the lead and Sangiovese plays support, aged in French oak barriques. It carries the Toscana IGT designation and stands among the most celebrated wines Italy produces, made only in the best years and in strictly limited quantity.

The 2021 is profound. Blackcurrant and dark plum, cedar and pencil shaving, sweet tobacco, espresso and a savoury Tuscan herb edge. The tannins are dense but silken, the structure enormous, and the finish seems to have no end. This is a wine of Bordeaux-like grandeur with an unmistakably Italian soul.

At around £320 this is collector territory, and the 2021 vintage — widely praised for its balance and finesse — is one to lay down. It is drinkable now with lengthy decanting, but its true reward comes with fifteen years or more in a cool cellar.

How to Serve

Serve at 17–18°C in the largest Bordeaux glass you own. Decant at least three hours ahead if drinking young, or cellar and reward your patience.

Where to Drink It

The River Café, Hammersmith — for a wine this important. CUT at 45 Park Lane — the steak programme deserves it. Alain Ducasse at The Dorchester — a cellar equal to the bottle.

Food Pairings

A Chateaubriand for two, rare and rested, is the occasion this wine was born for. Aged hard cheeses at the close will draw out its final layers.