Press

• Score: 96 Vintage 2019 Vinous Media The 2019 San Leonardo is impossible to ignore, embodying everything I love about this distinctly northern Italian Bordeaux blend. Masses of white pepper, sage, incense, sandy earth and fresh tobacco give way to dusty red currants. This is a model of elegance yet salty and savory to the core, with mineral-laden red and black fruits that flow across silky textures. The 2019 finishes classically dry with a crunchy tannic bite yet maintains an impossible freshness as savory herbal tones slowly fade. This is stunning, recalling the absolute top vintages I’ve ever tasted from San Leonardo. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2018 Vinous Media A mentholated freshness introduces the 2018 San Leonardo as it slowly blossoms in the glass. Swirling unlocks depths of dusty sage and violets, giving way to white pepper and black currants. This is elegant, lifted and potent. Sour citrus elevates ripe wild berries and savory spices. The 2018 doesn't miss a beat, finishing long and lightly structured, with a framework of fine tannins that gently tug at the senses as blackberry and inner rose notes slowly fade. The 2018 is an understated and youthful beauty that will reward medium-term cellaring. That said, hands off for now because the best is yet to come. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2018 Wine Spectator A graceful red, beginning quietly with a pure note of ripe black currant, with the palate slowly expanding to weave in flavors of bay leaf and cured tobacco, bitter cherry reduction, mineral, graphite and cigar box spices. The finely knit flavor range shows supple tannins, which emerge to define the elegant finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère and Merlot. Drink now through 2033. 5,900 cases made, 1,300 cases imported. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2018 Wine Enthusiast The 2018 vintage is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% Carmenère (a high percentage for any grower) and 10% Merlot. The wine opens with aromas of ripe plum mixed with tart blueberries, worn leather, sweet spices and dried flowers. The palate is expansive and rich, showing the 24 months of aging in French barriques, both new and used. Firm yet opulent, the wine will continue to develop and retain its mark as one of the best Bordeaux-style blends from Italy. Drink 2025–2040 Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2018 James Suckling Roasted red chili pepper with tapenade, berries, cedar and tobacco leaves. Very juicy on the palate with plush, silky tannins and a long, fluid finish. Cool and gastronomic. Drink now. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2017 James Suckling You could easily mistake the stunningly deep and subtle nose of this Sub-Alpine red for a high-end Medoc wine from the same vintage (which was on the restrained side). A super-elegant, mid-weight cabernet sauvignon-dominated blend with plenty of fine tannin married to blackcurrant and forest-berry fruit, plus touches of licorice, savory notes and bitter chocolate at the very long finish. Drink or hold. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2017 Wine Spectator An elegant red that's sleek and fresh, setting ripe red and black currant, green olive and a fragrant thread of cured tobacco and eucalyptus in a well-tailored, medium- to full-bodied frame. Revealing tension and drive, with a taut structure from the fine-grained tannins, this needs time in the glass or decanting to fully express itself. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère and Merlot. Best from 2024 through 2030. 5,900 cases made, 1,300 cases imported. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2017 Vinous Media The 2017 San Leonardo is dark, inward and intense with masses of crushed black currants, mint, sage, and balsamic spice. This pulls you close, as further depths of clove and tobacco form in the glass. It coasts along the palate with dense and polished textural fruits, mineral to the core, yet also elevated by brisk acids, while slowly drenching the senses in concentration. This leaves a web of fine tannins and a salty flourish, while tapering off with remarkable length. It's poised with savory herbs that linger long. In 2017, production was down by over 50% due to multiple hail events and a cask that was damaged during maturation. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 96 Vintage 2016 Vinous Media Another year in bottle has added unexpected depths and dimension to the 2016 San Leonardo. It wafts up with an alluring bouquet of smoky black currant and plum skins, complicated by savory herbs, hints of white pepper and fresh tobacco. It's hard chiseled edges have formed into smooth contours now, velvety yet youthfully dense, washing mineral encased dark red and black berries across a core of brisk acidity as a combination of saline-minerals and grippy tannins add tension toward the close. This finishes incredibly long yet also structured, begging for time in the cellar, as hints of licorice and earth tones grumble under an air of inner violet florals. The potential within the 2016 San Leonardo is off the charts, yet it will require a good amount of time to come fully into focus. Bury your bottles deep. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2016 James Suckling A very elegant, classic Bordeaux blend in the Italian context, but this is actually a special wine in any context, thanks to its subtlety and aromatic complexity. Blackcurrant, black-cherry and mint notes with just a hint of red bell pepper. Finely etched, medium-bodied palate with crisp tannins and lively acidity. The elegant tannins carry the long, cool finish. Drinkable now, but better from 2023. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2016 Vinous Media Deep, dark and sensual, the 2016 Tenuta San Leonardo lifts from the glass with an alluring mix of crushed blackberry and plum. With time it blossoms further to reveal tobacco, brown spice, white smoke and peppery florals. It's velvety and wonderfully textural, yet also energized by a complex mix of stimulating acids and minerals, giving life to ripe fruits, as youthful tannins slowly clamp down. The finish is incredibly long and structured. There’s energy and verve, mixing black raspberry with hints of licorice under an air of purple-tinged flowers. The 2016 has a lot to like, quite primary today but a year away from release. This early preview, which has been bottled for a year now, is full of potential. Very nice! Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2016 Wine Spectator A lovely beam of black currant and fig cake flavors play off savory bay leaf and olive tapenade notes in this elegant, medium- to full-bodied red, which is fresh and focused, with good tension from a core of sculpted tannins. Long and fragrant on the creamy, mineral- and spice-laced finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère and Merlot. Drink now through 2036. 5,900 cases made, 650 cases imported. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 97 Vintage 2015 Wine Advocate The 2015 San Leonardo pours forth with a beautiful velvety appearance and sultry dark garnet color. This wine shows a lot of life and dark fruit purity with black plum, blackberry, cassis and tarry prune. There is a delightful note of black pepper that is specific to this warm and sunny vintage. The fruit shows softer and richer concentration compared to past vintages and more pulpy density that gives this edition a bigger profile in terms of mouthfeel. Production is 75,000 bottles. San Leonardo is a wine made for long aging, but the nice thing about this vintage is that the bouquet remains quite accessible at this young age. Nevertheless, I'd still suggest keeping this bottle in your cellar so that it can calmly finish its evolution. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 95 Vintage 2015 Vinous Media The 2015 San Leonardo is a classic in the making. The bouquet is wonderfully perfumed with peppery florals, mixing tart cherry and blueberry with white smoke, hints of graphite and shaved cedar. Silky textures race across a core of juicy acids and minerals, making for a ripe yet cool-toned and pleasurably tactile expression. Youthful tannins slowly make themselves known toward the close. Long, structured and spicy, the 2015 finishes with a crescendo of tart blue and black fruits, tapering off to notes of subtly sweet spice. As good as this is today, it will only get better over time. That said, it doesn’t appear that this is going to shut down anytime in the immediate future, so it’s certainly worth checking on a bottle or two before forgetting the rest in your cellar Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2015 Wine Advocate I am reluctant to draw too many conclusions from this sample because it has not yet finished its bottle evolution. San Leonardo is notorious for its long aging requirements, even in a warm and accessible vintage such as this. The 2015 San Leonardo will be officially presented at Vinitaly in 2020 (in April) and will hit foreign markets soon after that. From what we can determine now, this is shaping up to be a beautiful wine with deep inner fruit richness and exuberance. In its current state, the wine is lavish and extremely radiant. I am faithful that great results will follow. Stay tuned Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 93 Vintage 2015 Wine Spectator Alluring tobacco and graphite notes draw you into the glass of this racy red. Fresh and medium- to full-bodied, offers plenty of ripe currant, fig cake, minerally iron and bergamot flavors in a focused, unencumbered frame. Sleek tannins are finely-meshed to the polished flavor range, firming the lingering finish. Lovely. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère and Merlot. Drink now through 2030. 5,500 cases made, 1,100 cases imported. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 92 Vintage 2015 James Suckling Notes of wet tobacco, dried earth, cumin, cedar and dried red plums form the basis of the nose. Structured and serious on the palate with just the right amount of fruit to balance out the backbone of firm, austere tannins. Drink from 2021. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 94 Vintage 2014 Wine Advocate The Tenuta San Leonardo 2014 San Leonardo has fleshed out nicely since I tasted the wine in a preview capacity a few years back. The cool, humid vintage is associated with a tendency toward greener flavors and thinner wines in many of its peers. You get some of that here; however, the wine shows a bouquet that has expanded far beyond those youthful parameters to show dark cherry, cassis, toasted nut and mountain herb. The tannins are polished but firm, and there's just enough textural snap or elasticity to hope for a long and healthy cellar aging. As usual with Tenuta San Leonardo, you need to have patience before opening this wine. Production is 70,000 bottles. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 91 Vintage 2014 Wine Spectator An elegant, medium- to full-bodied red, in a traditional style, featuring a rich array of red currant and raspberry fruit, accented by wild sage and woodsy spice details, firmed by sculpted, fine-grained tannins. Offers a fresh, mineral-laced finish. Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère and Merlot. Drink now through 2024. 5,416 cases made. –AN Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 91 Vintage 2014 Vinous Media Bright red ruby. Refined aromas of red fruit, spices, minerals and herbs. Then dense and multilayered, with a juicy tang to the red and blue fruit flavors present. Finishes long with outstanding clarity and cut thanks to harmonious acidity. Less concentrated and complex than some other famous vintages of this historic Italian wine (which is not surprising given the rainy, difficult vintage), but this is a major success in 2014 and a super example of Trentino Bordeaux blend. Another bottle I tasted was leaner and slightly green, so I averaged out my scores. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 90 Vintage 2014 James Suckling Dried cedar, tobacco, walnuts and green olives. Quite drying and firm on the palate, but lacks a little charm and vitality, compared to previous vintages. Still enjoyable, though. Drink now. Shelf Talker Full Page Review
• Score: 91 Vintage 2011 Vinous Media Deep ruby. Peppery, intense aromas of cedar, blackcurrant and violet on the strongly pungent nose. Then bright and delicate flavors of red and dark berries carried on the back end by high but harmonious acidity. Finishes long with hints of rose and white mushroom. More interesting today on the balanced, juicy palate than on the pungent nose. A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Carmenère, and Merlot. Shelf Talker Full Page Review