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• Score: 97 Vintage 2021 James Suckling The blue fruits and lavender with crushed stone aromas are very impressive and alluring here. Medium-bodied with fine tannins that are very polished and long. Some crushed berries. Turns to orange peel at the end. Merlot. Needs time to come together and open. Try after 2028. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 95 Vintage 2021 Wine Advocate Made with 100% Merlot, the Castello dei Rampolla 2021 Liù shows a note of spice and dried herb that frame a dark core of fruit. The wine is rich in appearance, but the mouthfeel remains elegantly slender and polished. There is pretty structural softness here that speaks to the spirit of the variety and the sunny brilliance of Panzano in Chianti. Peppery notes appear on the close. This is a release of 7,109 bottles and 20 magnums Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2021 Vinous Media The 2021 Merlot Liu' is fabulous. Dark and inky to the core, the 2021 saturates the palate with layers of blue/purplish fruit framed by incisive tannins. Graphite lavender, spice and menthol, appear later, but it is the wine's pure intensity that impresses most. What a gorgeous wine this is. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2020 Wine Advocate Now in its third vintage, the Castello dei Rampolla 2020 Liù is a fine and impeccably detailed wine. You taste bright fruit, cherry and dusty limestone with incredible focus, as if these things were under a microscope. That dusty mineral note of pencil shaving or chalkboard is especially beautiful. The finish is lean, or mid-weight, and there are hints of dried mint and black olive on the close. The bouquet is beautifully nuanced and the mouthfeel is more compact. The wine is made in cement and amphorae, and 6,832 bottles (plus 50 magnums) were produced. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2020 Wine Enthusiast Vinified in cement and in amphorae made of cocciopesto, a mixture that includes ground up tiles, stone fragments and sand, this savory Merlot is simply delicious. Smooth and polished, it boasts juicy black cherry, blackberry, orange zest and star anise before a minty finish. Lithe tannins give a silky mouthfeel while fresh acidity keeps it bright. No need to wait—enjoy now and over the next few years. Drink through 2025. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 92 Vintage 2020 Vinous Media The 2020 Merlot Liu' bristles with extreme purity. Aging in 3/4 cement and 1/4 amphora helps preserve tremendous purity of fruit. Blueberry, spice, lavender, chocolate and licorice are all dialed up. Sweet floral and spice notes add brightness throughout. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 92 Vintage 2020 James Suckling Lots of crushed blackberries and blueberries with flowers follow through to a medium body with fine tannins and a bright, tangy finish. Needs a couple of years to open. Merlot. Try after 2024. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2019 Wine Advocate The Castello dei Rampolla 2019 Liù is a relatively new wine (the first vintage made was the 2018) and a pure expression of Merlot. The wine is generously endowed with lots of fruit flavor and a distinctive punchiness that adds a bright and lifted quality to the bouquet. It sports a mid-weight approach with plenty of summer fresh cherry, plum and other purple fruits. It's hard not to feel immediately attracted to this wine, especially given its very vivid and bright personality. You'll have a lot of fun drinking Liù straight out of the gate or likewise waiting for it to complete its bottle evolution. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2019 Vinous Media The 2019 Merlot Liu' is another outrageously beautiful wine from Rampolla. Deep, inky and explosive, the 2019 possesses tremendous energy to match its purity of fruit. Blueberry, spice, leather, menthol and espresso build into the potent, tannic finish. Readers will find a serious Merlot packed with fruit and structure. Rampolla planted Merlot in 2000 and 2003 to soften Sammarco, but the vines turned out to be more productive than expected, giving birth to the Liu'. The 2019 was aged in cement and terracotta. I am not entirely sure how the Liu' will mature, but I also doubt that will be much a concern for the vast majority of readers. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2019 Wine Spectator Bright and pure, this red exudes raspberry, cherry, floral and earth aromas and flavors. Elegant and alluring, offering fine balance and a long, fruit-filled aftertaste, with a hint of tobacco peeking through. Merlot. Drink now through 2029. 250 cases made, 79 cases imported. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2019 James Suckling Berries, cherries and violets with some black-olive and black-truffle notes. Very complex. Medium-to full-bodied with linear tannins that are polished and fine, running through the center palate. Tight at the end. Very pretty and racy,]. Merlot. Unfiltered. Drink after 2023. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2018 Wine Advocate Here's a new wine from this historic estate in Panzano in Chianti. A pure expression of Merlot, the Castello dei Rampolla 2018 Liù moves slowly in the glass, swirling around at its own pace, showing the extra richness and softness of the variety. The wine is saturated and dense, packed tight with dried blackberry, plum and crème de cassis. Light touches of spice, smoke and mahogany appear at the back, but not in an overpowering or heavy-handed manner. The wine is firmly structured at the back, holding all that abundant fruit in balance. You would do well to give the wine a few more years to unwind and soften. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2018 Vinous Media The 2018 Merlot Liu' is a new wine in this range that emerges from some of the newer plantings on the estate. Dark fruit, grilled herbs, menthol and licorice open up first, followed by a range of earthy, savory notes that give the wine so much character and distinctiveness. This is serious Merlot. I would give it a year or two in bottle, as the tannins are pretty imposing today. Think of it as a bridge between the Chianti Classico and the dual flagships Sammarco and d'Alceo. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2018 Wine Spectator Perfumed aromas of violet, blackberry, black currant and cocoa draw you in, with pure fruit holding your attention. As this builds to the finish, moderate, dusty tannins lend support and this finishes long and firm. Merlot. Best from 2023 through 2033. —B.S. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2018 Wine Enthusiast New leather, menthol, cassis and cured meat aromas lead the nose on this succulent Merlot. Savory and full bodied, the smooth, concentrated palate doles out mouthfuls of blackberry jam, Marasca cherry and star anise alongside polished, enveloping tannins. Fresh acidity keeps it bright. Drink through 2023. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 91 Vintage 2018 James Suckling Rich nose, offering some blackberries, black cherries and minerals. Medium-to full-bodied, tight and slightly reticent on the palate, but there's enough there to blossom over the next two years. Try in 2021. Shelf Talker Full Page Review