The 2020 Palazzi is 100% Merlot made according to the highest standards by a winemaker, the late Andrea Franchetti, who strived for perfection. From his beloved Tenuta di Trinoro in Sarteano, with its infinite skies and rolling landscapes, this wine shows plump fruit, blackberry, plum, spice and campfire ash. From a hot vintage, the fruit is beautifully ripened but certainly not in an exaggerated manner. The wine shows softness, tension and supple texture. This bottle awards a lot of intensity and charm. Only 5,000 were made.

Because of frost and a cold spring, some of the vineyard parcels at this estate saw late harvest dates. But the Merlot was the first to come off the vines by the 14th of September. The Tenuta di Trinoro 2019 Palazzi is a pure expression of Merlot with incoming fruit from the Palazzi vineyard that is characterized by dense clay soils. The wine's intensity is what stands out most, and that power is fueled by lovely nuances of black fruit, spice, sweet tobacco and baker's chocolate. The alcohol content weighs in at 15.5%. Palazzi excels in terms of mouthfeel. The smooth richness and deep softness achieved here is only possible with this grape. Furthermore, it seems only possible in this spectacular, sun-drenched corner of undiscovered Tuscany known as Sarteano.

The Tenuta di Trinoro 2018 Palazzi is a pure expression of Merlot that boasts seamless power, intensity and concentration. With a precious 1,660 bottles produced, you are treated to a full-throttle expression from Tuscany that exudes generous black fruit, spice and sweet tobacco. Black cherry and plum give the wine soft contours and sweetness. Palazzi sees 15 days of fermentation on the skins and is racked into new barrels for eight months of aging. It is then put into cement for a final 10 months of rest. To the palate, the wine is structured and concentrated, suggesting a pairing with a succulent cut of red meat marinated in rosemary and olive oil. What a beautiful treat.

Also undeniably beautiful, the 2016 Palazzi shows inky black extraction and penetrating intensity. This pure expression of Merlot delivers rich notes of tobacco weaved in with ripe fruit, spice, dried blackberry and blackcurrant. There are also some pleasant undertones of raisins and figs that come with the early-ripening grape in a hot year such as 2016. The wine is fermented in steel vats and aged in new oak for eight months before going into cement vats for an additional 11 months. Some 2,900 bottles were made.

The 2015 Palazzi is a spectacular wine, truly spectacular. This pure expression of Merlot just pushes all the right gustatory buttons in this warm and exuberant vintage. The bouquet is seamless and generous, yet it is also built tight and heavy like a tank. It exerts power and elegance with effortless abandon. The bouquet peels back to reveal deep layers of black fruit, prune, spice, leather and cured tobacco. The mouthfeel is still a bit raw and astringent, but the quality of the tannins is evident nonetheless. The wine really requires another 5 years or so of bottle aging.