On Monday, the Ontario wine world welcomes the Gambero Rosso Tre Bicchieri Wine Fair to Toronto. The Tre Bicchieri award, pronounced ‘Tray Bick-kee-err-ay’, meaning ‘Three Glasses’, is the top honour which Gambero Rosso magazine awards to Italian wines in its reviews. To get ready for Monday, we’re keeping things Italian this weekend with Cantine Leonardo da Vinci’s Leonardo Rosso Toscana IGT 2016. We suggest you grab a bottle, some classic Italian charcuterie, and head out into the sun to enjoy it alfresco!
Tasting Notes: The 2016 Leonardo Rosso Toscana IGT is a blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, a.k.a. a ‘Super-Tuscan’. This blend creates a juicy wine packed with red and black fruit, floral notes, a touch of smoke, and a refreshing acidity that makes it easy to drink and easy to pair with all of your favourite Italian (and non-Italian) foods.
Enjoy With: Sausages or burgers off the grill, pastas in tomato sauce, pizza and hard cheeses.
Style: A fruity, easy-drinking, full-bodied red wine.
Terroir/Region: Italy’s wine regulation system is the DOC/DOCG system, and it outlines the practices grape growers and winemakers are legally allowed to use with the idea of connecting a grape or style to where it is from. If you don’t want to play by the rules, your wine can be certified IGT which gives you near free rein over how your wine is made. This is how the infamous ‘Super-Tuscan’ style began, proving that breaking the rules can also set the trend.
Producer: The Leonardo da Vinci winery was opened by 30 small producers in the early 1960s in order to share in the costs of building a winery. Since that time, it has expanded to other regions of Tuscany while continuing to focus on the Sangiovese grape. The growers contributing to Leonardo da Vinci (now over 200) share their knowledge and assist one another to achieve best practices and unlock the potential of their vineyards before passing the resulting wines on to their customers.
Availability: The 2016 Leonardo Rosso Toscana IGT will be available in the Vintages section of your local LCBO and for online ordering on Saturday, May 25, but some stores may already have it on the shelf. Viva Italia!
Check LCBO store inventory
Price: $14.95
LCBO#: #483818
Size: 750mL
Alcohol Content: 12.5% alc./vol.
