{"id":10066,"date":"2021-08-02T15:07:43","date_gmt":"2021-08-02T15:07:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/?p=10066\/"},"modified":"2021-08-02T15:33:12","modified_gmt":"2021-08-02T15:33:12","slug":"i-sodi-di-s-niccolo-2017-is-the-italian-best-rated-wine-by-wine-spectator","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/news-en\/i-sodi-di-s-niccolo-2017-is-the-italian-best-rated-wine-by-wine-spectator\/","title":{"rendered":"I SODI DI S. NICCOL\u00d2 2017 IS THE ITALIAN BEST RATED WINE BY WINE SPECTATOR"},"content":{"rendered":"In the Insider Weekly<\/strong> column of the wine bible, Castellare flagship wine is the Italian label with the highest score.

\r\n\r\n\"1\"<\/a>\r\n \r\nThe Insider Weekly<\/strong> column of the American magazine Wine Spectator<\/strong>, issued on 28 July<\/strong>, has awarded the vintage 2017 of I Sodi di S. Niccol\u00f2 by Castellare di Castellina with 96 points<\/strong>, the highest score assigned to Italian wines. A great result considering that the 2017 harvest was particularly difficult, characterized by a very long period of drought and rather high temperatures. The same score of 96 has been attributed to Masseto by Ornellaia, but to the 2018 vintage, definitely more favorable than the 2017.

\r\n \r\n\u201cToasty oak<\/em> \u2013 writes Bruce Sanderson<\/strong> in his review on the vintage 2017 – gives way to bright cherry, blackberry and violet aromas and flavors in this sleek, vibrant red, with wild herb, tobacco and mineral notes adding complexity. Supple, yet there’s a firm matrix of refined tannins and the finish is defined by lively acidity and finesse. Sangioveto and Malvasia Nera. Best from 2024 through 2045\u201d<\/em>.

\r\n \r\nThe 96 points to the vintage 2017 come when I Sodi di S. Niccol\u00f2 celebrate its 40 harvests<\/strong>. And it\u2019s a further confirmation for Castellare\u2019s flagship wine that both with the 2013 and 2016 vintages was ranked 1st Italian red wine, ahead of Solaia and Sassicaia, by adding the scores of the Italian and international wine critics.

\r\n\r\nI Sodi di S. Niccol\u00f2<\/strong> has marked the history of Italian oenology. In fact, it was the first Italian wine to be included in Wine Spectator\u2019s inaugural Top 100 list (1988) with the 1985 vintage, and again in 1989 with the 1986 vintage. A wine whose name was suggested by the famous wine writer and connoisseur Luigi Veronelli<\/strong> after tasting the first vintage, the 1977.

\r\n \r\n\u201cWith Luigi Veronelli\u201d<\/em>, tells Paolo Panerai<\/strong>, journalist, editor and patron of Castellare di Castellina, \u201cwe were descending from Castellare di Castellina cellar towards the most beautiful vineyard of the estate: the one that the old sharecroppers had named \u201cVigna de\u2019 sodi\u201d (\u201csodi\u201d meaning \u201chard\u201d in Italian) because of the soil rich in stones: the best for making wine. On the right appeared the Church of St. Niccol\u00f2, dating from the 1300s, surrounded by another vineyard, called after the saint, with the same hard soil. Luigi suddenly stopped and said: \u2018Paolo, here is the name for your extraordinary wine: I Sodi di S. Niccol\u00f2, but with the article \u2018I\u2019 before the name, please. Because that, and only that, will be the amazing wine that will bear this name”<\/em>.

\r\n\r\nStill in the Insider Weekly<\/strong> column issued on 28 July, Wine Spectator rated two other Castellare\u2019s Grand Crus: Poggio ai Merli 2019<\/strong>, Merlot in purity which got 94 points, and Coniale 2017<\/strong>, 100% Cabernet Sauvignon awarded with 93 points:

\r\n\r\n– Poggio ai Merli 2019<\/strong>: \u201cThis rich red is saturated with black cherry, black currant, tar, wild rosemary and cedar flavors. Beautifully layered, ripe and fresh, with a lingering fruity and savory aftertaste and refined tannins. Merlot. Drink now through 2030\u201d.<\/em> – B.S.

\r\n\r\n\"Poggio<\/a>

\r\n\r\n– Coniale 2017<\/strong>: \u201cThis red features ripe cherry, currant, loam, Tuscan scrub and bitter almond flavors, with a mineral underpinning. Firm and taut, with a beam of acidity driving the lingering finish. Balanced in a compact way, this should unwind in a year or two. Cabernet Sauvignon. Best from 2023 through 2032\u201d.<\/em> – B.S.

\r\n\r\n\"Coniale<\/a>\r\n\r\n\r\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the Insider Weekly column of the wine bible, Castellare flagship wine is the Italian label with the highest score.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":10056,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[53,50],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-awards","category-news-en"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10066","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10066"}],"version-history":[{"count":10,"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10066\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10083,"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10066\/revisions\/10083"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10056"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10066"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10066"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.castellare.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10066"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}