Tignanello Toscana IGT 1983

Tignanello was the first Sangiovese wine to be aged in small oak barrels, the first modern red wine to use such non-traditional varieties as Cabernet in the blend, and among the first red wines from the Chianti Classico area to be produced without white grapes. Tignanello is bottled only in favorable vintages, and was not produced in 1972, 1973,1974, 1976, 1984, 1992, and 2002.

Tenuta Tignanello

The vines grow at an altitude between 350 and 400 meters above sea level (1476 feet) in soils composed of marine marlstone that originated between the Eocene and Miocene periods rich in very fine gravel (scheletro) of Alberese (clay and limestone) and Galestro (marl and limestone). The vineyards’ south-eastern exposure is an ideal location for late-ripening varieties such as Cabernet and Sangiovese.

The climatic trend of the 1983 vintage in the Chianti Classico area was generally good. The summer was tendentially warm, balanced by the necessary amount of precipitation that guaranteed the optimal maturation.

Upon arrival in the cellars, the grapes were vinified separately. The maceration, conducted at a maximum temperature of 29 °C, lasted 10-12 days for Sangiovese and 14 days for Cabernet. Following the malolactic fermentation, completed by the end of autumn, the wine was transferred to Slavonian, Tronçais, Nevers and Allier oak barrels for 24 months. After blending and bottling, Tignanello refined in the historical cellar for a further year and a half.