TUA RITA, TOSCANA SYRAH 750ML 2021

Stefano Frascolla tells me two lessons he has learned about Syrah. The first is that it is a grape highly influenced by the soils it is planted in. Second, it is important to get the harvest window just right because Syrah has less latitude than, say, Merlot or Cabernet Sauvignon when it comes to scheduling the pick. The Tua Rita 2021 Syrah Per Sempre is a beautiful wine that displays enormous richness and softness, without heaviness. There are soft fruit tones cushioned by cinnamon and sweet spice. The wine is opulent, but it also offers exciting tension at the same time.

Per Sempre represents Syrah in a more typical vinification compared to Keir. It's matured for around 17 to 20 months in new French oak barriques and combines funky, fragrant red berry notes with incisive acidity, balsamic freshness, verticality and salinity. Classic Syrah hints of bacon fat emerge with air, and the ripe, concentrated, cocoa-sprinkled red and black fruits are really nicely balanced. Intense yet light on its feet, this super-fresh red hides its underlying muscularity well. Delicious.

The 2021 Syrah Per Sempre is a potent, tightly wound wine. Its freshness and structure are admirable, but readers should expect a wine that will require cellaring. The 2021 is far from the more bombastic early editions of Per Sempre. Savory, floral and mineral notes abound, while primary fruit lies more in the background. Oak impact has also been diminished substantially.