A higher, cooler site than those found in Fontodi's home area, with sandstone soil giving elegance and fine tannins. Spicy, vinous nose, with oregano. Chocolate, raspberries and cherries on the palate, which has lovely floral acidity on the finish. Tannins overt at first but completely integrate after only a little air - ready to drink already.

Schisty, limestoney soil, giving structure and acidity. Darker colour and softer, richer, less expressive nose than the Lamole. A bit leathery and mentholated. Great depth of dark frutti di bosco-accented fruit. So mouthwatering. Tannins are pretty 'rocky' at the moment - you can enjoy it now, but it benefits a lot from food (in my case, garlic bruschetta).

A gorgeous deep garnet colour. Fresh, mentholated nose. Floral and herbal. Really massive and concentrated, and stony, with lift towards the end and a spicy finish. Tannins coat the whole mouth, but are so stylish that you almost don't notice them. Delicious now but loads of potential.
Giovanni Manetti notes that Sorbo can age for decades - the 1990 is drinking well now, for example.

Opaque purple. So much concentration, and a creamy feel, but so light on its feet. Lavender and herbs. Sweet and bitter. I wanted not to be impressed by this, given I can't afford it (having been a buyer of prior vintages), but I failed.

A similar vintage to 2016, says GM - firm structure and lots of acidity. Still pretty dark, but obvious maturity on the nose - that same mentholated lift, but with more game and leather. Similar feeling on the palate, although with increased complexity - there's liquorice, chocolate, cherries, beef stock and then a crashing wave of juicy fruit across the finish. GM thinks this needs another couple of years to come into harmony and balance. Delicious wine, but you can tell the 2016 has an 'x' factor.

Sangiovese and Malvasia. Chestnut colour. Really viscous. Raisiny on the palate without being cloying or acrid. Tasty but a little bit sweet and simple - perfect for its traditional role of providing a little nip to welcome visitors but not one to have with food.