2018 Solengo Tenuta di Argiano

97P+

Blackberries, spice, walnuts and currants on the nose, following through to a full bodied, tight and dense palate, yet it’s agile and linear at the finish. Firm, layered tannins. This needs time to come around in the bottle. One for the cellar. Try after 2024.

The Argiano 2018 Solengo is a blend of 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Petit Verdot, 20% Merlot and 5% Sangiovese that flaunts the richness, dark concentration and spicy flavors of a full-throttle Tuscan blend, or the kind of wine that is universally attractive to lovers of hearty red wines for a steak-and-potato kind of night. Solengo's black fruit richness is backed by lots of oak spice and toast. With 60% new French oak (and 40% second-year barrique) for 18 months, this wine embraces a contemporary feel with tight tannins (both from the fruit and the oak) and a rich, long finish. I recommend putting this wine aside for a few more years to let that tannic bitterness subside.