Torrione, Petrolo 2022 75cl

Torrione is Petrolo's calling card — a Sangiovese-led red from the Val d'Arno di Sopra that has quietly become one of Tuscany's most reliable overachievers. The 2022 blends Sangiovese with dashes of Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon, and it drinks with far more polish than its price suggests.

Petrolo sits in the hills between Chianti and Valdarno, an estate the Bazzocchi Sanjust family have shaped into a serious address over the past three decades. Val d'Arno di Sopra earned its own DOC recognition relatively recently, and Torrione is one of the wines that made the case. The fruit comes off warm, well-drained hillside sites, farmed with a light hand.

Expect a deep ruby core and a nose of ripe black cherry, damson and dried herbs, with a savoury edge of tobacco and sweet earth underneath. The 2022 was a warm vintage, so the fruit is generous and the mid-palate fleshy, but Sangiovese keeps its grip — fine, dusty tannins and a bright seam of acidity carry the finish long. Cedar and a touch of espresso arrive from time in oak.

Drinkable now with an hour's air, though it will hold and deepen over five to eight years. At around £40 this is honest value: a wine with genuine structure and Tuscan character rather than a jammy crowd-pleaser.

How to Serve

Serve at 16-18°C in a large-bowled Burgundy or Bordeaux glass. Decant for an hour, especially in its youth, to let the fruit and savoury notes settle together.

Where to Drink It

Bocca di Lupo in Soho, for regional Italian cooking that flatters Tuscan reds. Trullo in Highbury, where the pasta and grilled meats suit its structure. Padella near Borough Market for a relaxed bowl of pappardelle.

Food Pairings

Made for the table: try it with a rare bistecca or a bowl of wild boar ragù over pappardelle.