Ipsus 2016

The wine in this vintage

Regarded as one of the finest Tuscan vintages in decades, 2016 combined a balanced summer with marked temperature swings, producing wines of great freshness, aromatic finesse and structure. Ipsus 2016 is a luminous expression of it: crunchy cherry, raspberry, rose, aromatic herbs, orange peel and a chalky note, on a taut, deep palate with very fine tannins and a long, savoury finish. Wine Spectator awarded it 97 points and James Suckling 98. It is a thoroughbred Sangiovese, already enjoyable yet destined to keep growing in the cellar for many years to come.

The producer · Mazzei

The history of the Mazzei family is intertwined with that of Chianti itself: it was the notary Ser Lapo Mazzei who, in a document dated 1398, first used the name Chianti to refer to a wine. Since 1435 the family has owned Castello di Fonterutoli, a medieval hamlet just south of Castellina in Chianti, tending its vines for twenty-four generations. Today the estate is led by brothers Filippo, Francesco and Giovanni Mazzei, who have added Belguardo in the Maremma and Zisola in Sicily to Fonterutoli. In the heart of Chianti Classico the vineyards are spread across several areas, including Fonterutoli, Siepi, Badiola, Belvedere and Caggio, whose different soils and altitudes allow a plot-by-plot reading of Sangiovese. The modern gravity-flow winery, carved into the rock, serves a style that combines precision, depth of fruit and respect for place. Its flagship wines include Siepi, a historic blend of Sangiovese and Merlot, and Ipsus, the expression of a single Sangiovese vineyard.

Critics' scores

• 98 James Suckling
• 97 Wine Spectator
• 94 Robert Parker

Technical details

Producer

Mazzei

Region

Toscana

Country

Italia

Type

Rosso

Vintage

2016

When to drink

Hold, still evolving

Critics' average

96.3/100

Sizes

75 cl, Magnum 150 cl, Case of 6 × 75 cl

eWibe code

0810216