Poggio Valente: Creation of a Tuscan Sangiovese cru

While 1997 was the first vintage of Poggio Valente, it was made in such small quantities that Le Pupille has no remaining stock. So 1998 was the first stop in this exploration of the evolution of the wine's style over the past 25 years. Under the guidance of Le Pupille's third consultant enologist, Cristian Le Sommer, Poggio Valente 1998 was created with a focus on concentration and energy. Today, the 1998 offers robust aromas of sous bois, tobacco, spice and roast chestnut. Still with good intensity and concentration, there's a spicy, mulchy character in the mouth too, reflecting its tertiary era. Hints of juicy blue fruits remain, balanced by good acidity and fine, resolved tannins.

Poured from magnum, the 1999 has a much fresher nose of ripe fruits, graphite, flint and dark berries. Concentrated and spicy, there's plenty of fruit remaining; juicy black berries and pomegranate carried by good acidity and ending with a lovely soy and saline finish. A great example of the benefits of ageing in magnum.

Again poured from magnum, the 2000 Poggio Valente features a minty, brambly nose, then fresh and peppery in the mouth with plenty of juice, refined and integrated tannins, and a lovely verticality. Menthol-infused dark fruits and spice are accompanied by herbs and a curranty touch on the long, vibrant and slightly umami finish.

Mulchy and minty, the 2002 has more extraction and less succulence than the preceding 2000, but still with good acidity and retaining a vein of menthol running through it. The tannins are bolder and less refined, too.

The infamously hot 2003 vintage is apparent in the character of this wine without dominating. Round and soft, it has spicy, mulchy aromas with a graphite note, grippy, sandy tannins, and plenty of dried curranty fruits in the mouth. There's some sweet juiciness on the finish, and pretty good acidity, too, and it's overall a good effort given the difficulties of the growing season.

The 2005 Poggio Valente is sumptuous and voluptuous, with inviting hints of chocolate on the nose leading to a rich, broad and fleshy palate supported by grainy tannins and good acidity. It's a succulent, vibrant red that's drinking really nicely at the moment, but it lacks the complexity seen in other vintages of this wine. The finish is woody, spicy and chocolatey, and slightly drying, and shouts loudly about its 100% barrique ageing beloved by Le Sommer.

2006 was one of my highlights of this vertical tasting. Although not the outright ‘best’ wine here, it's very appealing thanks to its cedary forest fruits and sous bois notes with touches of mint. Intense, vertical and sapid, the ripe, dark berries are supported by red fruited acidity which lends energy. The finish is long and lively, bringing out notes of chocolate and eucalyptus.

Labelled as Morellino di Scansano Riserva, to better reflect the quality and ageing of Poggio Valente, this 2009 is complex and well balanced. Mint, spice and sous bois scents lead into a concentrated palate with a spicy attack of red and black fruits, followed by a soft mid-palate with some emerging blue fruits. Succulent acidity and fine tannins provide lovely structure and elongate the zippy and spicy finish, which is full of savoury notes of black tea, forest floor, cedar and tobacco.

Although the first bottle was out of condition, the second bottle was much better, and in fact ended up being one of my top wines of the tasting. Ripe dark berry aromas with a hint of balsam introduce a rich, ripe, flinty palate with chocolate and spice notes. Light on its feet, fresh and balsamic, this is precise and vibrant, fleshy and poised, vertical and sapid. Lovely!

Poured from magnum, the 2011 – a moment of change at the estate as Luca d'Attoma replaced Cristian Le Sommer as consultant enologist – is intense and spicy, with a menthol fragrance and a verticality to the palate. Yet the concentrated fruit is dried out and slightly meaty, with chestnut and sous bois notes on the finish.

With the 2012 we begin to see the impact of Luca D'Attoma, who arrived in 2011. Major changes he introduced include swapping the barriques for tonneaux, and making Poggio Valente into a single-varietal wine, rather than a blend with Merlot as had been the case in the past. Fragrant red fruits and spice lead to a vertical and sapid palate; clean and bright with juicy cherry accompanied by soft, round tannins.

A slightly lighter wine with gentle menthol and forest floor aromas alongside floral fragrance, then an intensity of soft red fruit flavours and minty freshness on the vertical and saline palate. Poised and elegant, this is a lovely wine; although the slightly drying tannins on the finish count against it.

Fragrant, woody and peppery, this 2014 is full of cool, dark fruit aromas. The palate is intense and grippy, with verticality and sapidity underlined by beautiful poise and freshness. The mid-palate is succulent and juicy, with emerging notes of graphite and sous bois. Energetic and structured, the freshness here is beautifully woven into the fabric of the wine.

Dark, spicy fruits are accompanied by juicy cherry, menthol, mint and dried herbs in this 2015, with a lovely balance between ripe, grainy tannins and good acidity.

2016 is a highly regarded vintage across Italy, and Poggio Valente – poured from magnum – doesn't disappoint. It has a beautifully poised, vertical structure, with minty, spicy hedgerow fruit aromas interwoven with cool, fresh and tangy red fruit flavours, spicy cedar, and some mineral notes, then a slightly woody finish which should integrate with time. Class.

Poured from magnum, the precise and juicy 2017 features a reductive nose of toasted fenugreek seeds; ripe hedgerow berries and cocoa emerge with time in the glass. Soft pomegranate and raspberry align with very soft, round tannins followed by a gently balsamic finish. It feels like the team treated this wine very carefully in this notoriously hot and dry vintage, and as a result it just lacks a little bit of the character evident in other vintages.

Ettore's maiden vintage of Poggio Valente flying solo, he has taken Luca D'Attoma's model of elegance, aromatics and precision and run with it. This has an intense nose of spicy, brambly fruits with some dialled-back creaminess compared to recent vintages; then a fresh, vibrant and complex palate with hints of chocolate leading to a raspberry-rich finish.

2020 is markedly more dense and textured than 2019, with ripe and precise dark red fruits and a flinty edge over a background of cream and chocolate. Dense, textural and concentrated, it's nicely balanced by bright acidity, with a long finish of spice and berries.

2021 is ripe and silky, showcasing an intensity of soft, creamy red fruits with a delightful mineral streak. Pure, poised and precise, it's not quite as vertical as some of its predecessors but instead has an appealing roundness.