Tenuta San Leonardo, San Leonardo 2008 vs The Critic: 6x Barbera Del Monferrato, Villa Sparina 2021
Compare current tracked prices, stockists and core specifications. Tenuta San Leonardo, San Leonardo 2008 currently starts £2.90 lower.
| Availability | In stock | In stock |
|---|---|---|
| Best current price | £116.50 | £119.40 |
| Current stockists | 1 merchant | 1 merchant |
| Producer | Tenuta San Leonardo | Villa Sparina |
| Style | Red | Red |
| Grape | Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon | Barbera |
| Size | 750ml | 750ml |
| Where to buy |
Tenuta San Leonardo, San Leonardo 2008
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
The Critic: 6x Barbera Del Monferrato, Villa Sparina 2021
"Tom Harrow aka the WineChap cuts a distinctive dash with his red velvet suits and manly jawline. His firm Honest Grapes stocks some superb producers and he’s put together a selection of brilliant value Italians to stimulate the tastebuds. In the Case Barbera Del Monferrato, Villa Sparina, 2021, 6x 75cl ...next up we have a Barbera, the second grape of Piedmont which makes more accessible wines than the fabled Nebbiolo of Barolo. This 2021 Barbera Del Monferrato from Villa Sparina is oak-aged which adds spice and tobacco notes to the blackberry juiciness of the grape. It’s almost like an Italian Rioja; ideal for Sunday roasts like lamb or beef. Tom has managed to bring it in at £19.90 a bottle (£119.40 a case)." The Critic Wine Club
Prices and availability reflect the latest tracked merchant checks and may change before checkout.