Rocca di Frassinello
Merlot Baffonero 2020
| Denomination | DOC Maremma Toscana Merlot |
|---|---|
| Size | 0,75 l |
| Alcohol content | 15.0% by volume |
| Area | Tuscany (Italy) |
| Grape varieties | 100% Merlot |
| Aging | 14 months in 100% new French oak barriques; 12 months in bottle |
- Single-variety Merlot DOC: Maremma Toscana DOC, vintage 2020, 0.75 l, 15% vol
- Complex aromas: blackberry and blueberry, vanilla; then tobacco, cocoa and a hint of coffee
- Powerful palate: full-bodied, dense and velvety tannins, balanced acidity
- Aged in oak: 14 months in new French oak barriques, 12 months in bottle
- Serving and pairings: 18-20°C, decant for 1 hour; roasts, game, cheeses
Description
What kind of wine it is
Baffonero by Rocca di Frassinello expresses the soul of Merlot in the heart of the Tuscan Maremma. Its aromatic profile weaves together notes of blackberry and blueberry with hints of vanilla, tobacco and coffee. On the palate, it reveals a full-bodied and robust style, defined by a firm structure and dense, velvety tannins. The balanced acidity supports a long and persistent finish, highlighting a natural and marked propensity for long ageing.
Where it comes from
This Merlot originates in Gavorrano, an outstanding wine-growing area situated between Bolgheri and Scansano. The vines grow at ninety metres above sea level, trained using the spur-pruned cordon method with strict yield control. The clay-schist soils are well-drained and rich in stones, characteristics that give depth to the sip. The local climate is tempered by the constant Maestrale wind and a significant temperature range, both crucial for slowing ripening and preserving the grapes' aromatic precision.
How it is produced
Vineyard care is entirely manual, with rigorous shoot selection and careful thinning to ensure perfect productive balance. Harvesting is done by hand at the beginning of September. In the winery, fermentation in steel and concrete precedes the complete malolactic fermentation. The subsequent maturation takes place in new French oak barrels for fourteen months, a crucial phase for integrating the complex sensory profile. The process concludes with appropriate bottle ageing.
History and Curiosities
Founded in 1999 from the union between Castellare di Castellina and Domaines Barons de Rothschild-Lafite, Rocca di Frassinello blends Tuscan and French traditions in the heart of the Maremma. The Baffonero, named after the first vineyard at the foot of Renzo Piano's winery, is a very famous and intense limited edition. This pure Merlot thrives between Bolgheri and Scansano on well-drained clay-schist soils, refreshed by the constant Maestrale wind which, by slowing the ripening of the grapes, imparts complex aromas and extraordinary longevity.
Awards
-
2020
4Italian Sommelier Foundation (FIS) guide This has been one of the most prestigious wine guides in Italy for over 10 years.
-
2020
93/100
Decanter is a wine and lifestyle magazine, published monthly in around 90 countries. The magazine includes industry news, classic guides and advice on wine and spirits.
-
2020
3This guide is highly respected and offers the most comprehensive review of Italian wines. It has a long tradition and is based on blind tastings carried out by over 100 experts.
-
2020
93/100
James Suckling is an influential American wine critic and journalist who worked at Wine Spectator for 30 years. He left the magazine in 2010 to start his own website and guidebook (JamesSuckling.com). He specialises in Italian and Bordeaux wines.
-
2020
3One of the most prestigious wine guides in Italy.
-
2020
96/100
Vinous is the online guide from Antonio Galloni, one of the world's leading wine connoisseurs.
-
2020
4Italian Sommelier Association (AIS) guide
-
2020
94/100
Wine spectator is the most influential wine guide on the internet.
Tasting notes
Perfume
Color
Taste
Serve at:
18 - 20 °C
Longevity:
15 - 25 years
Decanting time:
1 hour
- Start up year: 1999
- Oenologist: Alessandro Cellai
- Bottles produced: 400.000
- Hectares: 80
Land, therefore, similar to Tuscany’s most famous wine regions, but with one important difference: an average temperature 4 to 5 and even 6 °C higher, with grapes therefore characterised by the ability to ripen even three to four weeks earlier..
This area, so incredibly well suited for cultivating grapes is part of the Gavorrano and Roccastrada municipalities. It is indeed here where the first – and so far only one of its kind – French-Italian joint venture project for the production of wine took shape.
The agreement between Castellare and Domaines Barons de Rothschild (Lafite), leading French wine brand in the world, aimed from the very beginning to bring together the experience of Castellare in the cultivation and vinification of Tuscany’s main vine variety, the famous Sangioveto, with Lafite’s long standing know-how of classical French vines like Cabernet, Merlot, Petit Verdot and Shiraz. It took two years to bring together the five small farms that make up the 500 hectares of the Rocca di Frassinello, a continuing project which today already sees close to 90 hectares of planted vineyards. This already extremely ambitious venture has been further enriched by marking and pairing the birth of the Rocca di Frassinello winery with one of the most prestigious names in the world of design and architecture: that of Renzo Piano. (nella foto a sinistra). Read more
| Name | Rocca di Frassinello Merlot Baffonero 2020 |
|---|---|
| Type | Red still |
| Denomination | Maremma Toscana DOC |
| Vintage | 2020 |
| Size | 0,75 l |
| Alcohol content | 15.0% by volume |
| Grape varieties | 100% Merlot |
| Country | Italy |
| Region | Tuscany |
| Vendor | Rocca di Frassinello |
| Story | History and Curiosities Founded in 1999 from the union between Castellare di Castellina and Domaines Barons de Rothschild-Lafite, Rocca di Frassinello blends Tuscan and French traditions in the heart of the Maremma. The Baffonero, named after the first vineyard at the foot of Renzo Piano's winery, is a very famous and intense limited edition. This pure Merlot thrives between Bolgheri and Scansano on well-drained clay-schist soils, refreshed by the constant Maestrale wind which, by slowing the ripening of the grapes, imparts complex aromas and extraordinary longevity. |
| Origin | Gavorrano (Grosseto), Maremma Toscana |
| Soil composition | Clayey rich in stones |
| Cultivation system | Spurred cordon |
| Plants per hectare | 5900 |
| Yield per hectare | 1,800 kg/hectare |
| Harvest | First half of September |
| Production technique | Hand-harvested grapes; fermentation in stainless steel and concrete; completed malolactic fermentation; ageing for 14 months in 100% new French oak barriques and 12 months in the bottle |
| Wine making | Hand-harvested grapes; fermentation in stainless steel and concrete; malolactic fermentation completed; aged for 14 months in 100% new French oak barriques and 12 months in bottle. |
| Aging | 14 months in 100% new French oak barriques; 12 months in bottle |
| Allergens | Contains sulphites |