Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 29
illustration by Tom Labaff
One consistent point of light during these tastings
has been Paleo, a pure cabernet franc from Le Macchiole. Like most Super-Tuscans, Paleo started out
as a blend back in 1989, but proprietor Cinzia Merli
recalls her excitement at the cabernet franc she and
her husband, Eugenio Campolmi, were vinifying separately: "We loved it from the first moment. It's juicy
and vibrant; it has body but not too much; and the
quality of the tannins is very high, never dry or hard."
She began supplementing Paleo's blend with increasing doses of franc until, by 2001, the transformation
was complete. In the best vintages, Paleo stands out
among more flamboyant wines from the region for
its combination of ripeness and restraint. Although
collectors may assign higher value to Le Macchiole's
Messorio (merlot) and Scrio (syrah), Paleo inspires
greater passion and loyalty within the wine trade.
And it is, after all, the only wine of the trio to have
its own fan club, Amici del Paleo.
Paleo was Tuscany's first pure cabernet franc, and
for some years its only one. Perhaps that's because
cabernet franc isn't the easiest variety to grow in the
region, according to Merli and others. Merli calls it
a "wild" variety that's hard to control, almost like an
unruly teenager. It can't be forced to do anything;
you can only nudge it in the right direction. Elena
Pozzolini calls it the most "unforgiving" of the Bordeaux varieties she has worked with at Tenuta Sette
Cieli since 2013. The Ratti family planted cabernet
franc vines on their estate in 2002 as a possible blending component, but the fruit they grew was so good
they began vinifying it separately as Scipio. Sette
Cieli's vineyards lie just outside of the Bolgheri zone
and rise to 1,300 feet above the Tyrrhenian coast,
where constant breezes and cooler evening temperatures lead to delicate aromas and fresh acidity.
"We loved cabernet
franc from the first
moment. It's juicy
and vibrant; it has
body but not too
much; and the
quality of the tannins
is very high, never
dry or hard."
-Cinzia Merli
WINE & SPIRITS
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018
Contents
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - Cover1
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - Cover2
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 1
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 2
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 3
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - Contents
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 5
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 6
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 7
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 8
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 9
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 10
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 11
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 12
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 13
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 14
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 15
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 16
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 17
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 18
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 19
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 20
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 21
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 22
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 23
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 24
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 25
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 26
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 27
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 28
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 29
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 30
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 31
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 32
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 33
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 34
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 35
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 36
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 37
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 38
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 39
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 40
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 41
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 42
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 43
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 44
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 45
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 46
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 47
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 48
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 49
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 50
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 51
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Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 53
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 54
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 55
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 56
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 57
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Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 60
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Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 62
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 63
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 64
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 65
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 66
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 67
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 68
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 69
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 70
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 71
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - 72
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - Cover3
Wine & Spirits - Fall 2018 - Cover4
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