Best of the Grandi Marchi

By John Szabo, MS

Last week representatives from 18 of Italy’s leading estates stopped in Toronto to pour their latest offerings. The Istituto Grandi Marchi,  a private association of high profile, family-owned wineries representing Italy from the Dolomites to Sicily, was created in 2004 with the aim of promoting premium Italian wine on a global scale. A seated masterclass was followed by a walk-around tasting.

The LCBO is running a special online offering of just under 50 wines from these estates, spanning a quarter century of vintages.

See the LCBO Grandi Marchi Offer

Quantities are limited; orders are first-come, first-served.
Offer closes November 14, 2024.

Here are 6 current classics not to be missed, all rated 94-95 points.

Buyer’s Guide: Top 6 Grandi Marchi Releases

Tasca d’Almerita – Tenuta Tascante Contrada Rampante 2020 Etna Rosso, Sicily
$79.00 #39898 THE CASE FOR WINE
Toute en finesse et delicatesse, Tasca’s Rampante, from high elevation nerello mascalese, delivers a magical perfume, delicate and refined – nothing will bowl you over here. It’s a wine that needs to be sought out, discovered, given time and patience. The palate is ultra-fine and refined, so savoury and sapid, salty in the volcanic fashion yet with uncommon elegance. A really lovely wine, one that should be a paradigm for the mountain. Drink now-2030 – such is the delicacy of the fruit I wouldn’t want to see it slip past.

Tasca d’Almerita Rosso del Conte 2018 Contea di Sclafani, Sicily
$79.00 #39901 THE CASE FOR WINE
2016 is a lovely vintage for this iconic Sicilian red first produced in 1970, a trailblazing field blend of nearly equal parts nero d’Avola and perricone from the San Lucio vineyard on the Tenuta Regaleali in the center of the island, the majority of which was planted in 1959 and the remainder in 1965, all bush vines. The vineyard reaches nearly 500 above sea level, and the harvest for these two late ripening varieties often stretches into early October. Grapes are co-fermented in steel and aged in wood for 18 months. I love the exotic spice, the dried flowers, the wild Mediterranean scrub, the ripe red and black fruit – such a representative example of the Island. The palate is sleek and supple, with beautifully managed tannins, ripe and refined. Length and depth are excellent. A truly unique expression, balanced, beautifully poised, an excellent vintage, very finessed. Drinking well now or hold into the ’30s.

Jermann Vintage Tunina 2022 Venezia Giulia IGT, Friuli-Venezia Giulia
$109.00 #11271 HALPERN ENTERPRISES
The first commercial vintage of Vintage Tunina was 1975, by now an Italian classic, and one of the first premium white blends in Italy. Vineyards are now farmed organically, and the (field) blend today is composed of sauvignon, chardonnay, ribolla gialla, malvasia and a splash of picolit. It’s aromatic to be sure, with sauvignon providing the lion’s share of aromas with its green melon, passion fruit, thiol-rich profile, reminiscent of excellent examples from nearby Styria in southern Austria. The palate is broad and concentrated, with a strong streak of wet stone flavour and terrific length. Acids are remarkably fresh in this warm vintage, supported by a subtle touch of CO2. This really hangs on and on. A terrific wine, best from 2025, or hold another decade.  Another classic Tunina in the making.

Tenuta San Leonardo ‘San Leanardo’ 2016 Vigneti delle Dolomiti, Trentino-Alto Adige
$139.00 #32474 FAMILY WINE MERCHANTS INC.
The flagship wine of San Leonardo is a blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 30% carmenere, 10% merlot in 2016 with vines ranging from 25 years to 75 years-old, vinified in small concrete tanks, with relatively short maceration of less than 2 weeks, followed by 2 years in wood, 70% barriques and the balance in tonneaux of which only about 1/4 is new. This nose here is very pretty, clearly in the varietal, and cool climate mix, rarely reaching more than 13.5% alcohol, in fact usually closer to 13%. I find it quite youthful for an 8 year-old wine, still delivering abundant fruit in the fresh red and black berry spectrum. The palate is mid-weight and particularly sapid, sophisticated and classically styled, and would not be out of place on a table of classic Bordeaux. Tannins are fine and sandy, and length is excellent. Accomplished, classy wine, not a blockbuster, but a subtle beauty.

Ca’ del Bosco Annamaria Clementi 2015 Franciacorta Riserva Brut Zero, Lombardy
$149.00 #484162 PHILIPPE DANDURAND WINES LTD.
From Ca’ del Bosco’s 270ha estate across 11 villages, farmed organically, Annamaria Clementi is the top bottling of Franciacorta, named in honour of Maurizio Zanella’s mother who founded the winery. Unusually, grapes are washed and dried before vinification to remove the inevitable copper residue that comes with organic farming. The base wine is fermented and aged in barrels before spending almost 9 years on the lees after the secondary fermentation. The nose shows appealing toasty-brioche autolysis character, beautifully integrated into still-fresh citrus and white-fleshed orchard fruit, pear and ripe lemon. The palate is rich and creamy, with even more toasty character emerging and excellent length. Top notch Franciacorta, complex and complete, drinking perfectly at the moment.

Col d’Orcia Poggio al Vento 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva, Tuscany
$185.00 #464552 DIONYSUS WINES & SPIRITS LTD.
Col d’Orcia’s classic single vineyard Poggio al Vento is planted on sandy soils rather unique for Montalcino and has always been one of the estate’s most refined Brunellos, subtle and elegant. It spends at least 8 years at the winery before release, including 3 years in large Slavonian oak casks (2500l and 7500l). I find it a bit closed today, perhaps moving through a shy period, though the palate shows beautiful balance and freshness, fine-grained tannins, lovely fresh-ripe acids and terrific length. An absolute classic in the making, not yet at peak – try after 2026, or hold, as history has shown, into the ’40s and beyond. Classic wine from a brilliant vintage.