It was the last day of VinItaly 2022 and I was steering myself out of one of the 11 gigantic meeting halls when one of my logistics reps called me over to meet his friend Federico and taste his wines. Despite my rather thrashed palate, I obliged and was promptly enthralled, leaving a series of asterisks and exclamation points scribbled alongside various dots of spilled wine. Yes, it had been a long day.
Never one to commit to anything after a long day of tasting, I begged off but made certain to circle back up with Federico and get samples stateside. After re-tasting I determined I was, indeed, of sound mind when I made those scribbles and, after some tough negotiations (these are not inexpensive), committed to a variety of San Felo wines.
Morellino di Scansano is a riper, more approachable style of Tuscan Sangiovese differing from its northern brethren due to the ripeness levels it can achieve in southern Tuscany. The result is a rounder and more savory style of wine characterized by lively freshness and crisp character.
One of San Felo's flagship offering's, the "Lampo" (Federico's Italian cowboy grandfather's nick-name) is a supple and sultry, ripe and opulent, refined and complex Morellino di Scansano - truly an exceptional wine from the exceptional 2020 vintage. Trust me, this is a wine to go hog wild on.
Its been nicely scored by Italian and German/Austrian critics:91/100 WinesCritic.com (Raffaele Vecchioni - formerly with James Suckling team but now out on his own)91/100 Falstaff
Regardless, I love this wine and I know you will too.
Upon opening, the punchy, crunchy, chocolate-wrapped raspberry and black cherry liqueur really starts to sing with a couple swirls of the glass becoming more defined and spicy while adding plums and a halo of Tuscan herb. Effusive and expressive as this wine is on the nose, its similarly complex on the palate with cherry and chocolate coating the front edge of a chewy wall of tannins that simply melt away, resolving softly to trail behind classic ripe Sangiovese notes of morello cherry, spicy plum, chocolate and herb with pretty, leather-tinged minerality to keep things lively. Sumptuous and delicious with dynamite structure, this wine is a delight to imbibe now but will be really singing in another six-months and over the next 5-7 years or longer.
