San Leonardo, Cabernet Franc 2021 vs Tenuta San Leonardo, San Leonardo 2011
Compare current tracked prices, stockists and core specifications. One of these is currently out of stock across tracked merchants.
| Availability | In stock | Out of stock |
|---|---|---|
| Best current price | £77.80 | — |
| Current stockists | 1 merchant | — |
| Producer | Tenuta San Leonardo | Tenuta San Leonardo |
| Style | Red | Red |
| Grape | Cabernet Franc | Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon |
| Size | 750ml | 750ml |
| Where to buy | No current tracked offers |
San Leonardo, Cabernet Franc 2021
We’re thrilled to offer the second vintage of San Leonardo C.F.. Quality is sky-high, quantities are tiny—just 1,000 bottles—and despite rising costs, the price remains unchanged from the 2020. The wine’s origin lies in a quirk of San Leonardo’s history: in 1990, vines thought to be Cabernet Franc were revealed as Carmenère, leaving just a tiny 0.5ha pergola vineyard of true Cabernet Franc planted in 1989. Long blended in small amounts, its outstanding 2020 expression convinced star oenologist Carlo Ferrini it deserved the spotlight as a single-varietal wine. Knowing our love of special barrel projects, Anselmo Guerrieri Gonzaga asked if we'd like to collaborate on bringing the wine to life as a global exclusive. With Cabernet Franc enjoying a renaissance worldwide, and 2021 being an exceptional vintage, this release promises something very special indeed. "The vintage is glorious, a vintage of light, and the vines have responded in a terrific way. The organic cultivation added to many of the biodynamic practices we have adopted have given the fruits a great life inside and this is reflected in the wines. Alcohol always extremely well balanced not exceeding 13.00 % which gives the possibility of great drinkability as usual. Wines are very ripe and ready but have lovely acidity." Marchese Anselmo Guerrieri Gonzaga, San Leonardo What the critics say about San Leonardo: “. ..astoundingly consistent quality… beautifully low-key and like the most refined red bordeaux imaginable ”. Jancis Robinson “ …one of the great wines of Italy… Sassicaia and San Leonardo seem like brothers separated in childhood ” Monica Larner “ Surely the most successful Bordeaux blend of Northern Italy ” Jancis Robinson “ This blockbuster Bordeaux Blend from Trentino is clearly the Sassicaia of the north. ” James Suckling
Tenuta San Leonardo, San Leonardo 2011
After banging the drum for the Guerrieri Gonzaga family’s remarkable (and remarkably consistent) Cabernet Sauvignon-based blend for the last fifteen years, we relish each new endorsement and instance of critical appreciation and Jancis’ is the just the latest in a long line of articles from major critics. As a reminder... The wines of San Leonardo are more akin to Bordeaux than Bolgheri with their balance and purity and (said the late and greatly respected Italian specialist Nicolas Belfrage) " can have an elegance-cum-depth capable of taking on the best clarets of the world ". Jancis clearly agrees, noting latterly the wine’s “ astoundingly consistent quality ” and how each vintage is “ beautifully low-key and like the most refined red bordeaux imaginable ”, determining it is " Surely the most successful Bordeaux blend of Northern Italy ”. The Wine Advocate’s Monica Larner calls it “ … one of the great wines of Italy… Sassicaia and San Leonardo seem like brothers separated in childhood ” after James Suckling had previously made the comparison referring to San Leonardo as “ The Sassicaia of the North ”. The comparison is more than skin deep as San Leonardo’s owner Marchese Carlo Guerrieri Gonzaga, a rare example (at the time) of a professionally-trained aristocrat-oenologist, spent time at Tenuta San Guido back in the 1960s helping create Sassicaia with legendary consultant, Giacomo Tachis, whom he subsequently employed at his own estate. The estate has received the top ‘Tre Bicchiere’ rating from Gambero Rosso for an unprecedented seventeen vintages, and has twice been voted by aggregate Italy’s top wine release of the year (jointly with Sassicaia, to continue the comparison). Antonio Galloni weighs in saying “ The Guerrieri Gonzaga’s are one of the great families of Italian wine. Over the years, the Guerrieri Gonzaga’s have produced a number of stellar Bordeaux-influenced reds at San Leonardo, many of which I have had the privilege to taste. ” Meanwhile his collea
Prices and availability reflect the latest tracked merchant checks and may change before checkout.