2023 Bibi Graetz, Soffocone di Vincigliata, IGT Rosso, Toscana, Italy.
I’ve been following this wine and Bibi Graetz since their 2012 vintage and it has proved to be very rewarding and this 2023 Soffocone, with its risqué label art, is a beautiful and authentic all Sangiovese sourced from the Galestro rocky soils in the Fiersole hills, not far from Florence. Dark garnet in the glass and with a savory nose the Soffocone is sultry on the full bodied palate with deep mulberry, plum, black cherry and bramble berry fruits, along with tobacco leaf, minty herbs, cedar, balsamic dipped strawberry, wilted rose petals and anise.The fermentation and aging for the Soffocon was, as Graetz says, conducted in large 30HL wooden casks and done with indigenous yeasts, without temperature control, lasing around 10 days followed with few days of maceration and then a full 18 months of maturing in traditional big casks. Bibi Graetz’s Fiesole vineyard Vincigliata is over 40 years old now, and it provides some impressive flavors and terroir to the Soffocone, plus Graetz does a traditionally labeled Chianti DOCG from these vines as well. Graetz’s top wine the Testamata, which I also tried recently, is one of the top 100% Sangiovese wines available, it comes from a small site in Grieve, Chianti Classico, plus there is a very special white wine, Colore Bianco, from the Isola del Giglio, a small Tuscan island where Graetz found an ancient Ansonica vineyard, it is a lovely, rare and intriguing wine as well, which I will follow up with notes on soon. A thank you to Tatiana Toropygina of Bibi Gaetz for showing me through the lineup and getting me up to date on the latest from this outstanding winery, she very expertly guided me, and it made me extremely exited to visit Tuscany again, as soon as possible.
Danish artist Bibi Graetz started his winery in 2000, and now has become one of the region’s top producers and part of the elite Tuscan fabric, focusing on native varietals and environmentally friendly vineyard practices and more traditional cellar work, as seen in this wine clearly. The Bibi Graetz Soffocone is made up of single vineyard fruit, from his first Tuscany purchase, typically abut 90% Sangiovese, 7% Canaiolo and 3% Colorino from the Fiesole zone, near Florence that was originally fermented in stainless steal and aged in primarily used French barriques, but now is closer to 100% Sangiovese and done in the mentioned (above) more traditional way. it still is one of my favorite guilty pleasures, as I love Sangiovese, and not as I’ve said before, just for it’s label and name! The label and name, which in Italian means blowjob, somehow has made it through ATF screening, much to many smiles and giggles and it has been called a very naughty wine, but forgetting this selling point, this is a superb Tuscan red that delivers almost as much pleasure as it’s name, sorry couldn’t resist… It’s long been noted that the hills around Florence have been popular with young lovers looking for romance and a certain privacy, and Graetz has a few times discovered this near his vineyard in Fiersole, and being the artist he is, he designed the label to honor these lovers. The higher elevation, here on the hill of Vincigliata, with its south west to south faces, is blessed with a perfect exposure and is scenically surrounded by a forest, all of which Graetz explains adds to the unique quality, ripe details and complexity of his elegant and delicious Soffocone ITG Rosso, which I highly recommend.
($72 Est.) 94 Points, grapelive