2016 Tenuta di Gracciano della Seta Vino Nobile di Montepulciano DOCG 750 ml

It took us three separate trips to Montepulciano in southern Tuscany to secure these gems for Wine Access members... and it was more than worth it. Decanter proclaimed this 2016 Vino Nobile di Montepulciano “a stand out for the vintage,” and a wine of “power” that still has plenty of “brightness and drinkability” in its 93-point review. 

We’re still haunted by its notes of flowers, tobacco, raspberries, and spice, which linger through a long, tannic finish that promises another decade-plus of evolution. At less than $23 per bottle, this is the definition of a Sangiovese that punches way above its weight.

On each of our journeys to Montepulciano, we could see the fabled hillsides of Montalcino a mere 20 miles away. We had made three separate trips to Montepulciano to taste with Giorgio della Seta, the man at the helm of Tenuta di Gracciano. In addition to a state-of-the-art winery built in 2013, the family holdings include four estate vineyards, including some of the most historic crus of Montepulciano: Casale, Toraia, Maramai, and Podere Rovisci, where vines between 15 and 40 years of age grow. The views alone look like something that Leonardo could have painted.

On every visit, Giorgio was invariably gracious if rather formal—the picture of Italian aristocracy. But no allocation was ever offered; it seemed as though our repeated visits were in vain. Back home in Napa Valley, we watched as Tenuta di Gracciano’s scores inched ever higher, and the 2013 was named a Cellar Selection by Wine Enthusiast. With all the improvements to the facility and to the vineyards, we knew where this was going.

On our third visit, after a leisurely lunch and tasting, we again asked for an allocation, but della Seta demurred one more time.

Enough was enough. We made him an offer he couldn’t refuse: We’d take an agreed-upon number of cases every year for the next three years. We didn’t see it as a gamble, we told him, because we knew the wines were exceptional, and only getting better with each passing year. Listening to our pleas, della Seta leaned back in his chair as his face softened. He extended his hand, and we shook: The deal was done. Then we were ushered into his chilly old cellar, where he pointed to an empty shelf. “OK. That’s your new home.”

And we lucked out, because the next three years in Tuscany proved outstanding. The 2016, in fact, has been hailed as an “extraordinary” vintage by Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate. James Suckling summed it up best when he pointed out that Tuscany “remains the strongest beacon for the great wines of Italy around the world, and as a symbol for outstanding quality wines, it is only going to get stronger with the 2015 and 2016 vintages.”

Their praise means one thing when it comes to a wine like the 2016 Tenuta di Gracciano Della Seta Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, especially at these prices: It won’t last long here at all.