95 points,

Robert Parker's Wine Advocate, January 2007

The gorgeous 2004 Ornellaia is a great way to start this tasting. A lively dark ruby, it is a vibrant effort bursting with expressive aromatics and layered, well-delineated fruit, showing much purity on the palate and closing with a long, finessed finish. Readers hoping to catch this wineâ_Ts full array of nuances will have to wait at least another few years as the wine remains quite primary today. This exquisite effort is not to be missed. A blend of 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 25% Merlot, 12% Cabernet Franc and 3% Petit Verdot. 95/Anticipated maturity: 2011-2019. Tenuta dellâ_TOrnellaia is without question one of Italyâ_Ts blue-chip properties. The gorgeous, sprawling estate is located in Bolgheri in Tuscanyâ_Ts Maremma. On a recent visit I had the opportunity to taste a number of the estateâ_Ts wines with General Manager/Agronomist Leonardo Raspini and Oenologist Axel Heinz, including verticals of the estateâ_Ts top bottlings Ornellaia and Masseto. Ornellaia is a Bordeaux-inspired blend consisting principally of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot. In 2003 a small percentage of Petit Verdot was introduced. The use of several varietals gives the winemaking team the luxury of being able to tailor the exact proportion of the blend to the specific strengths of a given vintage. Because the blend tends to vary from year to year in a vertical tasting Ornellaia shows many different facets of its personality. After harvest the varietals are vinified separately. Fermentation and maceration lasts between 25-30 days after which the wines are moved into French oak barrels where they age for 12 months. The wines are then racked and assembled into the final blend, which spends an additional six months in barrel prior to being bottled. The percentage of new oak has risen from 50%, which was used for vintages 1997 and 1998, to 60% used in 1999, to the 70% the estate has employed since 2000.

92 points,

Stephen Tanzer's IWC, August 2007

Deep ruby. The initially reticent nose begins with a hint of grass before revealing wonderfully complex notes of raspberry, red and black cherry, leather, tobacco and intriguing minerality. Much more explosive on the palate from the get-go, with deep, ripe red and black fruit flavors given extra lift and complexity by pretty coffee and dark chocolate highlights. The very long, nuanced finish features smooth tannins. A very successful Ornellaia.

97 points,

Wine Spectator, September 2007

Dark ruby-purple in color, with complex aromas of dark chocolate, cola, vanilla, cedar and currant. Full-bodied yet ultrarefined, with dense, seamless, caressing tannins. Everything is in the right proportion. Superb. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot. Best after 2009. From Italy.- JS

About Winery

Tenuta dell'Ornellaia is situated on the Via Bolgherese in a triangle between the sea, the medieval hamlet of Bolgheri and the town of Castagneto Carducci. To get there, one travels up part of the historic `cypress avenue' celebrated by the poet Giosuè Carducci. The estate comprises 240 acres planted to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Petit Verdot.

Since 1981, when Tenuta dell'Ornellaia was established, this beautiful and unspoiled area has become synonymous with winemaking of the first order and the philosophy of `quality without compromise.'

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