Castello di Ama L’Apparita 2011

The Company

Ama takes its name from a small borgo, an agricultural hamlet, nestled in the hills at an altitude of almost 500 metres.

Five centuries ago it was a hub of a florid farming and winemaking business overseen by a group of local families.

The hills and valleys surrounding the castle of Amma are the most beautiful in all Chianti, superbly tended with fertile grain fields, olive groves and magnificent vineyards.

Castello di Ama, the winery, was founded in the 1970s by a group of families who had fallen under the spell of this magical spot.

They set themselves the task of reviving Ama’s past glories and of producing wines that would rank among the best in the world.

Ama’s wines are well situated, in full sun, beautifully tended, as if they were gardens.

L’Apparita was Tuscany’s first pure Merlot and has been a cult wine since its very first vintage, in 1985.

The small parcels that make up the 3.84 hectares of the L’Apparita vineyard are set at the top of the Vigneto Bellavista hill, at an altitude di 490 metres asl.

In 1975 they were planted with Canaiolo and Malvasia Bianca, then grafted over with Merlot clone 342 between 1982 and 1985. The vines are trained as open lyre and the soil is clay rich, making this tiny cru a real gem in the world of winemaking.

James Suckling 98/100

This is a potential best-ever year for a wine described by Antonio Galloni as “right up there with the very finest wines, not just of Italy, but of the world”.

Galloni considers Castello di Ama proprietors Marco Pallanti and Lorenza Sebaste to be “true visionaries”, crafting “some of the most riveting wines in Tuscany” vintage after vintage.

Such a reputation for consistent quality makes James Suckling’s claim that the 2011 is perhaps the “greatest L’Apparita ever” all the more compelling – a star vintage for an always-stellar wine.

The l’Apparita combines “deep and beautiful” fruit notes with exceptional ageing potential.

Vintage 2011

The 2011 is a near-perfect vintage, but with less than 600 cases made per year, it is almost eye-wateringly scarce. Awarded 98 point score by Suckling, demand has been at a peak, so secure a case.

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