Wine Advisor
Masseto, Masseto 2002
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Description
To open a bottle, is to unleash a liquid kaleidoscope. A rare combination of sumptuous opulence and polished elegance. As a tribute to its rugged force, its softness, and the debt it owes to the soil from which it rises, Masseto was named after the rock-hard clusters of blue clay called ‘massi’ that form on the vineyard’s surface.
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2002 is another eye-opening wine. The year is mostly remembered for its cool, wet summer and a number of dilute, uninteresting wines. Not here. The 2002 Masseto will go down as one of the handful of truly great wines made that year. I imagine in ten or twenty years it will be fascinating to taste alongside Miani’s Merlot, Soldera’s Brunello Riserva and Conterno’s Monfortino. There is no question the wine is in that league. Today the 2002 remains a baby, with tons of depth in its dark fruit. Hints of rose petal and spice develop in the glass, adding further complexity. There is plenty of structure underneath, suggesting the 2002 will be a very long-lived wine. Today, it is a knock-out. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2022.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2002 Masseto is a strong effort, made all the more notable given the poor overall quality of the vintage. It presents an herbal profile on the nose along with notes of tobacco, black pepper and white truffle that emerge with some time in the glass. On the palate it is a decidedly slender Masseto, with less concentration than is typical of this wine, but the fruit is vibrant and fresh, the oak well-integrated, and it offers much persistence as well as length in a more linear expression of this wine. While the 2002 will never compete with the best Massetos, on an absolute level it is a lovely wine that clearly has the potential to offer some surprises down the road. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2017. Importer: Folio Fine Wine Partners, Napa, CA; tel. (707) 256-2700
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2002 Masseto is a strong effort, made all the more notable given the poor overall quality of the vintage. It presents an herbal profile on the nose along with notes of tobacco, black pepper and white truffle that emerge with some time in the glass. On the palate it is a decidedly slender Masseto, with less concentration than is typical of this wine, but the fruit is vibrant and fresh, the oak well integrated, and it offers much persistence as well as length in a more linear expression of this wine. While the 2002 will never compete with the best Massetos, on an absolute level it is a lovely wine that clearly has the potential to offer some surprises down the road. 90/Anticipated maturity: 2008-2017. The 100% Merlot Masseto, on the other hand, has proven to be a wine of greater singularity. Its unique, unmistakable personality always comes through, especially in a set of widely diverse vintages, as this vertical attests. The Masseto vineyard measures roughly 7 hectares. Set on a gently sloping hill, the vineyard is divided into three sections which contain different clay-based soil types. The structure of Masseto comes from the central portion of the vineyard (Masseto Centrale), where the terrain is most compact. Towards the upper part of the hillside (Masseto Alto) the soils contain a higher percentage of rocks and thus yield wines that are more aromatic. The lower stretch of the vineyard, known as “Masseto Junior,” is also the most recent to be planted. According to Raspini the fruit from these vines bridges the qualities of the wines from the central and upper portions of the vineyard and thus serves to give Masseto its finesse and balance. There is also a small amount of fruit that comes from the “Vigna Vecchia” plot which is the source of the Merlot that is used for Ornellaia. Each parcel is harvested and vinified separately. Fermentation and maceration typically last around 25 days, give or take, depending on the quality of the fruit, after which the wines are moved into 100% new French oak barrels for the malolactic fermentations. The wines spend 12 months in oak prior to being assembled, after which the final blend spends an additional 12 months in oak prior to being bottled. Tenuta dell’Ornellaia is without question one of Italy’s blue-chip properties. The gorgeous, sprawling estate is located in Bolgheri in Tuscany’s Maremma. On a recent visit I had the opportunity to taste a number of the estate’s wines with General Manager/Agronomist Leonardo Raspini and Oenologist Axel Heinz, including verticals of the estate’s top bottlings Ornellaia and Masseto.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2002 Masseto is such a gorgeous wine. Red cherry, sweet red plum, spice and floral overtones all convey freshness. Medium in body, yet with lovely depth, the 2002 is an example of how well Masseto can do in cool, rainy years. As always, the magnum format helps. The 2002 spent 20 months in oak, a bit less than normal.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Once again, I preferred the 2002 Masseto to the 2003, a wine that showed all of the excess weight, heaviness and opulence of the torrid vintage. Elegance and silkiness remain the hallmarks of the 202 Masseto, and those qualities came through in spades on this night.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2002 is another eye-opening wine. The year is mostly remembered for its cool, wet summer and a number of dilute, uninteresting wines. Not here. The 2002 Masseto will go down as one of the handful of truly great wines made that year. I imagine in ten or twenty years it will be fascinating to taste alongside Miani's Merlot, Soldera's Brunello Riserva and Conterno's Monfortino. There is no question the wine is in that league. Today the 2002 remains a baby, with tons of depth in its dark fruit. Hints of rose petal and spice develop in the glass, adding further complexity. There is plenty of structure underneath, suggesting the 2002 will be a very long-lived wine. Today, it is a knock-out. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2022.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The estate's 2002s show why Tenuta dell'Ornellaia is one of Italy's premier properties. Those obsessed with points will chase the higher rated 2003s and 2004s, but consumers who buy wines to drink them would do well to consider these 2002s especially given that pricing should be favorable. The 2002s are by no means the equal of the estate's top wines but they will offer useful drinking while the more important vintages reach maturity.The 2002 Masseto is a strong effort, made all the more notable given the poor overall quality of the vintage. It presents an herbal profile on the nose along with notes of tobacco, black pepper and white truffle that emerge with some time in the glass. On the palate it is a decidedly slender Masseto, with less concentration than is typical of this wine, but the fruit is vibrant and fresh, the oak well integrated, and it offers much persistence as well as length in a more linear expression of this wine. While the 2002 will never compete with the best Massetos, on an absolute level it is a lovely wine that clearly has the potential to offer some surprises down the road.
Reviewed by: Ian d'Agata
(100% merlot) Dark, saturated ruby. Perfumed aromas of black cherry, dark chocolate and leather, with pepper and espresso accents. Sweet, bright and nicely focused if politely styled; surprisingly juicy for the vintage, with sound acidity framing the black fruit flavors. Dense and fine-grained, with the chocolate note carrying through on the palate. Finishes with a hint of drying tannins. This boasts good texture and ripe fruit for the year, but I think of it as an excellent merlot, rather than an excellent Masseto.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The estate's 2002s show why Tenuta dell'Ornellaia is one of Italy's premier properties. Those obsessed with points will chase the higher rated 2003s and 2004s, but consumers who buy wines to drink them would do well to consider these 2002s especially given that pricing should be favorable. The 2002s are by no means the equal of the estate's top wines but they will offer useful drinking while the more important vintages reach maturity. The 2002 Masseto is a strong effort, made all the more notable given the poor overall quality of the vintage. It presents an herbal profile on the nose along with notes of tobacco, black pepper and white truffle that emerge with some time in the glass. On the palate it is a decidedly slender Masseto, with less concentration than is typical of this wine, but the fruit is vibrant and fresh, the oak well integrated, and it offers much persistence as well as length in a more linear expression of this wine. While the 2002 will never compete with the best Massetos, on an absolute level it is a lovely wine that clearly has the potential to offer some surprises down the road.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
This is surprisingly outstanding quality after being such a rainy vintage. Lovely nose of mint, berry and mineral follow through to a full to medium body. Firm and silky texture. Delicious and holding on beautifully. Drink now.
About the Producer
For 700 years the Frescobaldi family has combined tradition, experience and innovation with creativity and the pursuit of excellence. The family has always looked to develop and celebrate the diversity of Tuscany’s terroir, being proud owners of some of the greatest vineyards in this region. The Masseto hill is a special place, both a revelation and a mystery. This is where terroir victoriously transcends the grape varieties and where the blue clays of the Pliocene Era tell their ancient story. Millions of years ago a deep marine substrate was deposited which transformed gradually into blue clay that came to the surface on this hill after thousands of years of erosion. The shells and fossils found imbedded in the clays are testimony to this. With a heart as hard as stone and yet with an intriguing fragility, the clay knows just how to adjust to its environment & climate. This contrast is reflected in the intense power and silky elegance to be found in Masseto.
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