Two Tuscan Gems - Le Ragnaie
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Fall 2022 Offer #4: Le Ragnaie
Bottom Line: Le Ragnaie’s Troncone 2020 is a versatile and delicious red wine that stands ready to upgrade your Tuesday night. It’s complex but also very drinkable. The bottle disappears before you know it. My notes: “Ashy Tuscan herbs and wild cherry on the nose. Darker, deeper fruit than 2019 Troncone, with more minerality; cleansing, gentle tannins. More layered with every sip.”
Bonus wine - This gorgeous rosato was a last-minute addition to today's offer. Thursday afternoon in Montalcino, I asked Le Ragnaie winemaker Riccardo Campinoti to sample a Ligurian rosato I’m considering for a future offer. (Like me, he was very impressed by Du Nemu's rosato - stay tuned.) While tasting, Riccardo remembered he had a few cases of his own rosato still available, if we were interested. I said yes before even tasting it – previous vintages were fantastic, and 2019 was a banner year in Montalcino.
The next day, I tasted this rosato with Alessandro Pepe at Rimessa Roscioli in Rome. We were both shocked by the overall quality and wildly expressive flavor profile. Le Ragnaie ages the wine two years before release to add complexity. There’s a touch of oak in evidence, but it’s restrained and integrated. As a whole, the wine has a succulent quality that’s irresistible. I’m now convinced Le Ragnaie makes one of the finest pink wines in Italy. My notes: “Herbal nose, pretty citrus fruit, nothing sugary; silky texture on the palate, structured and serious for rosato, yet still bright and clean. Le Ragnaie should make more of this!”
To order, just click the one of the links above and follow the prompts. Keep reading for more information on Le Ragnaie and these wines.
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Wine friends,
I love this 2020 Troncone because it’s both simple (in a good way!) and profound at the same time. The wine is simple in that it’s not trying to be anything other than pure, honest Tuscan Sangiovese. No fuss and no frills. The acidity is bright, and the tannins are smooth.
The profound part of the wine reveals itself about halfway through the bottle. When you taste it, be patient. The flavor depth evolves and grows as you sink your teeth into the wine. It makes you wonder how a wine this complex can also go down so smoothly.
Also on the profound front, this wine ages quite well. Open Tuesday member Dianna Bentley just opened a bottle of the 2012 and confirms it’s still in the zone.
Please check out this Rimessa Roscioli video of Riccardo talking about Montalcino and his Le Ragnaie vineyards. Towards the end, Riccardo explains why the Troncone is no longer labeled “Chianti Colli Senesi,” as it was in 2012.
Le Ragnaie is now recognized as one of the top estates in Tuscany. The owners, Riccardo and Jennifer Campinoti, make classic Sangiovese-based wines. Their Brunello di Montalcino (and Rosso di Montalcino) wines are in high demand and more difficult to find every vintage.
Troncone is the best value in the Le Ragnaie lineup, and it might also be the single best wine value in all of Tuscany.
For those of you who bought the 2019 Troncone during our spring beta test, this 2020 has a slightly darker fruit profile due to the warmer vintage. The herbal notes are less obvious in the 2020, with carbonic flavors more prominent. Overall, I like this 2020 slightly better, but it’s a tough call. Please let me know if you disagree!
Here's a quick visual of where Le Ragnaie is located in Tuscany.
If you’re ever in Montalcino, Le Ragnaie has an excellent agriturismo hotel that is collocated with the winery. From the property, (especially the pool area) there are wonderful views of the surrounding vineyards and hillsides. Our Instagram and Facebook posts about this offer will include some photos I took on location a few days ago.
Food pairing: Troncone pairs well with just about any meat dish or red sauce dish. I’ve had it recently with pizza, spaghetti bolognese, and costoletta alla milanese. While it has enough acidity to drink well on its own, I’d look to snack on some taralli or cheese and crackers. Cheez-Its are still approved if you’re in a pinch!
The Rosato is even more versatile. I might avoid pairing it with steak or lamb, but otherwise, it's tough to go wrong here. I recently had it with prosciutto and mozzarella di bufala – a spectacular combination.
Open Tuesday has the lowest price in the U.S. on both of these wines.
12.5% ABV
12.5% ABV
Happy Tuesday,
Chris
If you have any questions or feedback, please email us: [email protected].
How it works:
After clicking one of the links above, you’ll be able to request 1-12 bottles. Actually, that’s all you have to do!
About a week later, when we close the offer, you’ll get an email confirming how many bottles we allocated to your account. We will charge you when the wines are allocated.
We’ll do our best to allocate all the bottles you request. But when there are more requests than bottles available, we’ll allocate one bottle to all requesting members before allocating a second bottle to anyone. We want as many members as possible to try these wines.
This is the fourth offer during the fall season. We are sending offers on Tuesday and Sunday through the first week of November.
We ship in increments of 12. With 18 offers this season, there should be plenty of chances to get to 12, 24, or 36. If you don’t have an increment of 12 at the end of the fall season offers, we can hold your wines until the next offer season – spring 2023.
Wines offered in the fall will ship in late November-early December for $5 per bottle (if you have an increment of 12.) This is about the same as the price to ship coast-to-coast within the U.S. – but our wines come directly from Italy.
Once your payment method is on file, you can make future requests with just a few clicks from the offer email. If you don’t have a card on file, you can add one during your first order. Your personal financial information is protected by Stripe.
Chris MacLean
Rob Genova
Open Tuesday Wines S.r.l.s.
Via Augusto Anfossi 19, 20135 Milano - Italy
