The Argiano Super Tuscan known as Solengo is a blend of cabernet sauvignon, petit verdot, merlot, and sangiovese. There is no syrah in the mix despite numerous suggestions on the internet that the 2017 includes it. The site is a mix of stony alluvial soils with small amounts of clay and silt planted to medium age vines between 15 and 22 years old. The crop was half the average size at harvest, further concentrating a wine that by nature is abundant. The ferment is done in concrete and aged in sixty percent new, forty percent second year French oak. I love that the Solengo has managed to retain its power and richness while displaying a sense of elegance, an obvious nod to the return to elegance and style at Argiano. Expect a savoury, spicy, black-fruit wine with notes of tobacco, minerality and dense supple tannins. You can drink this now, but waiting a decade would be the best option.
July 2020