BOURGOGNE MONTRE-CUL Domaine Derey Frères 2023 vs LE DIFESE Tenuta San Guido Incisa della Rocchetta 2023

LE DIFESE Tenuta San Guido Incisa della Rocchetta 2023

On to 2023 Le Difese, a wine that has captured my heart of late. Made from 65% Sangiovese and 35% Cabernet Sauvignon and weighing in at 13.5% alcohol, with some oak augmentation using old Guidalberto barrels, this is another cosmic release for this wine. Leave the anticipated release price aside for a moment and consider this wine in isolation, forgetting its parentage and hallowed turf. This beautiful, buoyant, highly attractive red wine balances enticing openness with formal build-quality under the bonnet. I know it is a baby, but you could conceivably down a bottle with steak frites without missing a beat, and yet I expect it to gather in kaleidoscopic appeal over the next 24 months. I adored last year’s 2022 vintage with its cool, calm, and collected attitude, knowing wink, and rakish appeal. But this 2023 is a phenomenon and the finest Le Difese I have ever tasted. I feel compelled to give it a gold medal score. It doesn’t matter that this wine is a ‘third tier release’ because its perfume, flavour and finish are simply stunning. So, it is with great pleasure that 2023 Le Difese gains a rare 18.5/20 score, and if this wine does not make it into my Finest Fifty 2025 round-up in late December, I will eat my <em>capello</em>. <br><br> Ps – given the class of 2023 Le Difese and how I view this wine as a Sassicaia soothsayer, I say you should set your alarm for Feb 2026, because something special will undoubtedly appear on the horizon.