Wine Profile
Tasting Notes
Full and brilliant red-black color, showing very rich aromatics combining savory Tuscan herbs, fresh red cherry, pomegranate, with mocha, wild berry and currants on the nose. Feminine, yet structured with sweet, focused red plum notes and hints of cranberry from the Sangiovese mingle with the expansive, spicy black pepper and black cherry of the Bordeaux varietals. It is an elegant, complex wine, with good depth, volume and balanced with very velvety tannins providing length and a smooth, lingering texture.
Ratings
♦ 90 Points - Robert Parker, The Wine Advocate "The label of the 2005 Cabernet Sauvignon La Castellana takes us to medieval Italy, but the fruit in this wine takes us to the heart of Napa Valley. A blend of 74% Cabernet Sauvignon, 12% Merlot, and 14% Sangiovese, aged 20 months in French oak, it is this winery’s New World version of a Super-Tuscan. Loads of spice, new saddle leather, blackcurrants and cherries are all present in this ripe, medium-bodied, attractive and complex wine that should drink nicely for another decade." ♦ 90 Points - James Laube, Wine Spectator 2015 Retrospective Tasting "Well-structured, with vibrant acidity giving life and firmness to the black cherry and blackberry flavors. Flexes tannic muscle on the finish, where the flavors gain a gravelly note, ending clean and refreshing. Drink now through 2022."
Awards
Wine of the Week - About.com "The 2005 Castello di Amorosa La Castellana, Super Tuscan blend showcases an ultra-elegant synergy of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Sangiovese. Deep, dark color, thick waves of spice-laden aromatics and impressive primary and secondary palate flavors start this show off with a bang! Dark cherry and black plums dominate the fruit profile with ambitious backup played by black pepper and a dash of dark chocolate and espresso.
Make no mistake; this is a full-bodied, full-featured red wine that enjoys a long, distinguished finish and brims with palate complexity, enduring elegance, and rich, supportive tannins. A perfect candidate for pairing with roasted cuts of beef or wild game, sausage or dishes that rely on the traditional Italian spices of garlic, rosemary and thyme.” - Stacy Slinkard
Winemaker Notes
Beginning as early as the late 1960s, a few winemakers in Tuscany attempted to make more complex red wines by planting the classic Bordeaux red grape varieties. While they experimented with these wines as separate varietal blends excluding the regional variety, Sangiovese, they also tried omitting the small amount of the white variety “Malvasia bianca” traditionally added to Sangiovese to produce “Chianti Classico” in lieu of a blend with Bordeaux varietals (namely, cabernet sauvignon and merlot) The term "Super Tuscan" describes a red wine made in this new style. It is aromatic and intense, with a character all its own. Italian examples of the Bordeaux reds from this region are Sassicaia, Ornellaia, and Tignanello, now some of the most revered wines in the world. Examples of the Bordeaux/Sangiovese blends are Guidalberto and Le Volte. La Castellana is similar in style to these wines.
