nouveau / liquid assets / preview / review TASTING


Tasted at Masseto, January 30, 2023 2016 Masseto


What does perfection taste like? Well, for one thing, it does not taste perfect, it has to have personality, it has to be exciting, with a lively sense of risk; it must have balance, of course, but be on the edge of something significant, like a steep precipice or a fathomless void. This Masseto from 2016 has it all. It is big and bold, and yet exquisitely poised and graceful. It is monumental, but perfectly proportioned. The color is deep and dark, as it is still young, and this color expresses itself on the nose with still-reticent floral and herbal tones, along with something savage and untamed that is tangibly present and yet invisible, like wild boar footprints in the snow. When you taste this wine it impresses you with its intensity and vigor, its engaging personality, its elegance and polish, and its devilish energy, but all this greatness is contained and not explosive. There are dark-berry and wild-myrtle flavors, complex notes of damp potpourri and burned sage. The sweetness of the fruit is all savory, like charred aubergine and bicycle grease. An underlying smoky, tarry note like a winter fireplace, with oriental spices and star anise, pulls you through into a very persistent finish, still glowing with youthful splendor long after the wine is swallowed. 2023–60. | 100


2011 Masseto


Tight, taut, concentrated, monumental, this wine has an impressive and toned structure and a noteworthy natural acidity that is remarkable for such a hot year (a Masseto signature). Contrary to what some might suppose, Masseto is not acidified. Heinz says that the Merlot holds its acidity to such an extent that on a regular basis the Merlot of Masseto has a lower pH than the Cabernet Sauvignon of Ornellaia. Heinz has never acidified either Ornellaia or Masseto in the 18 years that he has been winemaker. Notwithstanding its powerful structure and


impressive physique, the 2011 Masseto is pliant and graceful. It is like looking into the tense but soft and melting eyes of a deer. The sumptuous and complex flavors are generous, rich, and darkly sweet. The silky tannins and gorgeous texture linger in the memory. According to Heinz, this vintage reminds him of the 2001 when it was young, so all the more, on that basis I would warrant that it’s worth cellaring. 2030–60. | 98+


2010 Masseto


This was Masseto’s latest-ever harvest, stretching into October. The nose is generous and plummy, with enticing floral notes of iris, musk rose, and pelargonium. Savory-sweet fresh blood and dark, juicy pruneau d’Agen, with mineral notes of ferric oxide and old terra-cotta bricks heated by the sun are enveloped by a breeze of sundried sage, rosemary, laurel, green fig, and all the other sweet and wild smells of the macchia mediterranea (similar to garrigue) which is the mix of native wild plants that grow along the Tuscan coastline and the Maremma. The toned tannic structure is like a pocket-sprung mattress, solid and yet heavenly-soft, subsumed in a textural roundness that swells like the ocean. As the wine develops into the long finish, it is prodigious and grand, like a monumental ziggurat covered in grassy moss but still visible. This is an outstanding wine, with plenty of time ahead. 2023–50. | 96


2006 Masseto


This is a gorgeous, gorgeous wine. It seizes the day because this is its moment. It is not too young, it is not too old, it is spot on. The 2006 Masseto smells and tastes like the inside of a Bentley. It feels like Roger Federer’s backhand. Augmented with floral elements like candied violet and woodsy, creamy pine nuts, savory- sweet flavors of chestnut purée are interlaced with ripe and juicy red-pomegranate seeds layered with sandalwood, floor wax, green fig, kumquat, and something else like sour kombucha. The tannins are powerful but smooth, masterful


and polished. Everything is tight and in its right place, with a surefooted virtuosity that is also at the same time relaxed, natural, unimposing, the epitome of true elegance. Savory sweetness and gorgeous folds of textural nuance envelop you all the way through to the end of the long finish. The 2006 is a beautiful wine that displays perfectly well what Masseto is really all about. 2023–40. | 100


2001 Masseto


This wine was served twice, from bottle and then (later at dinner) from double magnum. A truly superb vintage, no matter the context. This is another superlative wine, as well as an historic landmark for Tuscany in general and Masseto in particular. This vintage was awarded 100 points at the time of its release, and thereby transformed Masseto from being something of an insider’s secret, to what it later became and still is today—the top dog. This is now a mature wine with captivating tertiary notes of beef consommé and fine cigars, as well as wafts of ylang-ylang and potpourri. Savory laurel, sage, and rosemary infuse the palate, complementing more meaty and exotic floral notes of ossobuco with saffron and a lifted, citrusy, tangy-sweet blood-orange character augmented with smoky wild honey, chipotle, camphor, and incense. Voluptuous, like cool silk sheets and a floaty eiderdown, caressing, solid, and yet soft, its rich and creamy texture is supported by an athletic tannic structure and a savory sweetness following through to the long finish. The heavenly texture is, however, what gives this wine its extraordinary pedigree and is what most lingers in the memory. Hard to equal, this wine is now in its prime (and from double magnum will remain there for many years). 2023–40. | 99+


2000 Masseto


The 2000 Masseto is more restrained on the nose than some of its stablemates but unfolds with aromas of ripe strawberry, red plum, and cherry, Seville orange, and Valrhona chocolate. Masseto’s characteristic textural exuberance enlivens a long, persistent finish. Supremely refined, this is not a showy vintage, but it nevertheless displays the finesse, the irresistible charm, and the rich, sophisticated artist’s palette for which Masseto is famous. 2023–30. | 94


1996 Masseto


The 1996 Masseto was bookended by celebrated vintages on either side (the 1995 and 1997) and seems generally to have been rather overlooked. If nothing else, this vintage demonstrates just how perceptible the distinctive voice of the Masseto terroir is in every vintage, conveyed with remarkable continuity in every wine throughout this estate’s hitherto short and lively history. Marasca cherry, citrus peel, and damask rose lead the complex aromatics shaped by an elegant and lacy structure, like beautiful haute couture silk lingerie. Fully mature, it is time to drink this beauty now and over the next few years. 2023–30. | 93


68 | THE WORLD OF FINE WINE | ISSUE 79 | 2023


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85  |  Page 86  |  Page 87  |  Page 88  |  Page 89  |  Page 90  |  Page 91  |  Page 92  |  Page 93  |  Page 94  |  Page 95  |  Page 96  |  Page 97  |  Page 98  |  Page 99  |  Page 100  |  Page 101  |  Page 102  |  Page 103  |  Page 104  |  Page 105  |  Page 106  |  Page 107  |  Page 108  |  Page 109  |  Page 110  |  Page 111  |  Page 112  |  Page 113  |  Page 114  |  Page 115  |  Page 116  |  Page 117  |  Page 118  |  Page 119  |  Page 120  |  Page 121  |  Page 122  |  Page 123  |  Page 124  |  Page 125  |  Page 126  |  Page 127  |  Page 128  |  Page 129  |  Page 130  |  Page 131  |  Page 132  |  Page 133  |  Page 134  |  Page 135  |  Page 136  |  Page 137  |  Page 138  |  Page 139  |  Page 140  |  Page 141  |  Page 142  |  Page 143  |  Page 144  |  Page 145  |  Page 146  |  Page 147  |  Page 148  |  Page 149  |  Page 150  |  Page 151  |  Page 152  |  Page 153  |  Page 154  |  Page 155  |  Page 156  |  Page 157  |  Page 158  |  Page 159  |  Page 160  |  Page 161  |  Page 162  |  Page 163  |  Page 164  |  Page 165  |  Page 166  |  Page 167  |  Page 168  |  Page 169  |  Page 170  |  Page 171  |  Page 172  |  Page 173  |  Page 174  |  Page 175  |  Page 176  |  Page 177  |  Page 178  |  Page 179  |  Page 180  |  Page 181  |  Page 182  |  Page 183  |  Page 184  |  Page 185  |  Page 186  |  Page 187  |  Page 188  |  Page 189  |  Page 190  |  Page 191  |  Page 192  |  Page 193  |  Page 194  |  Page 195  |  Page 196  |  Page 197  |  Page 198  |  Page 199  |  Page 200  |  Page 201  |  Page 202  |  Page 203  |  Page 204  |  Page 205  |  Page 206  |  Page 207  |  Page 208  |  Page 209  |  Page 210  |  Page 211  |  Page 212  |  Page 213  |  Page 214  |  Page 215  |  Page 216  |  Page 217  |  Page 218  |  Page 219  |  Page 220