2010 Illuminati d'Abruzzo Riserva Zanna 750 ml

Illuminati “Zanna” Riserva … 94pts, Tre Bicchieri, and Taming Montepulciano

If your palate for Italian reds tends towards the fragrant, the elegant, and the restrained, today we’re beginning with a caveat: Today’s wine is NOT for you. On the other hand, if you’re enamored of the sun-drenched intensity and blackberry muscle of the south, there are few wines on the American market that hold a candle to the 2010 Illuminati Montepulciano D’Abruzzo Riserva Zanna.

In 1890, Nicola Illuminati set up a small wine company outside of Controguerra, some 220 kilometers east of Rome. The setting was breathtaking. Verdant hills bathed in summer sunshine, a stone’s throw from the azure waters of the Adriatic. At the time, with the exception of wine made for family consumption, hardly a producer in Abruzzo bottled under their own label. Signor Illuminati was determined to buck the trend.

While there are few reports documenting the actual flavor profile and structure of the Illuminati reds in the early 1900s, it stands to reason that given the absence of refrigeration and modern winegrowing techniques, those early Illuminati Montepulcianos were unyielding, braced by hard tannins. Nonetheless, despite the challenges presented by this hearty, thick-skinned variety, Nicola’s reds would soon become renowned throughout the region.

In the early 1950s, Nicola’s grandson Dino took the reins of the family business. High sugar content was never a problem on the estate, Dino reasoned. Reaching “physiological ripeness,” however — where sugars, acids and tannins were in perfect balance at harvest — was far more challenging. As neighbors surely watched incredulously (in the ‘50s, still just a small handful of growers dared bottle their own wine!), Dino invested aggressively in new plantings. He purchased new Slavonian barrels and puncheons and carved three temperature-controlled caves into the Abruzzo hills. Then Illuminati and his winemaking crew began experimenting relentlessly in the cellar, incrementally refining the family’s wines, taming the Montepulciano tannins.

In the sensational 2010 growing season — a vintage in which vines were treated to extended hang-time — seeds browned beautifully as tannins softened. The 2010 “Zanna” Riserva that drew raves at VinItaly 2015 and from Gambero Rosso’s Tre Bicchieri judges is a staggering achievement, a bottle that would have had Dino Illuminati’s grandfather grinning ear to ear.

The soils here — 900 feet above sea level just east of the Tronto River — are a fairly rich mix of marl and clay, allowing for deep root penetration. The oldest vineyard on the property, the pergolas of Zanna are also the last to be picked. After harvest in the early morning hours, clusters were completely destemmed. Vinification was gentle and long, with temperatures holding steady at 30 degrees Celsius. Once malolactic fermentation was completed, the wine was transferred into large Slavonian puncheons to be aged for 36 months before bottling.

The 2010 Illuminati Montepulciano D’Abruzzo Riserva Zanna is one of the most talked-about and decorated wines ever to be made in the region. Vivid dark-ruby in color. Gorgeous, complex nose of blackberry, currant, and dried flowers, high-toned and vibrant. Rich, intensely concentrated, filled with fresh black and red fruits, finishing with soft, sumptuous tannins, arguing gracefully for a 10- to 20-year stay in the coolest of cellars.

94 points from Antonio Galloni’s Vinous. Tre Bicchieri from Gambero Rosso. 200 cases made it stateside. HALF have been earmarked for WineAccess. $45 on release. Just $30 today — shipping included on 4.