critic reviews
Hauntingly dark and alluring, the 2021 Colore entices with a blend of dusty violets and lavender, giving way to dried blueberries and sweet smoke. It washes across the palate with textures of pure silk, finessed and lifted in feel, with depths of tart wild berry fruit that saturate. Brisk acidity adds balance, and hints of licorice form toward the close. While firm, the 2021’s tannins are crunchy and crisp, adding structural tension without taking away from its undeniably pretty persona. This finishes with outstanding length and a sour cranberry tinge that puckers the cheeks. The future is bright, but patience is required.
Just love this wine, the lyricism and the generosity of it, and its always vivid depiction of fruits and stones. So juicy, so drawn out, works with the vintage, leans into its low yields, with greengages, raspberry, plum, gentle spices, lemongrass, minerality studded with mandarin peel and sage. Translucent and yet full of flavour, once again it begs you to draw up a chair, gather friends, and enjoy. What a brilliant wine and a brilliant winemaker in Bibi Graetz. From a 58ha estate, Colore comes from the oldest vineyards of Sangiovese that range up to 135 years old.
The 2021 Colore, 100% Sangiovese, is medium garnet-purple in color. After a little swirling, a glorious perfume of raspberry coulis, Morello cherries, and rose oil emerges from the glass, followed by hints of cinnamon toast, Sichuan pepper, and underbrush. The medium-bodied palate is coated with vibrant red berry and floral layers, framed by exquisitely ripe, fine-grained tannins and bold freshness, finishing epically long and fragrant. This is absolutely stunning!
The Bibi Graetz 2021 Colore is Sangiovese from old vines, but otherwise, winemaking and the oak regime is identical to the other top red, Testamatta. In this case, fruit comes from the Lamole area with vineyards at a high 600 meters above sea level. Some are south-facing but high up on the mountain. As Bibi explains: Colore delivers power and freshness, whereas Testamatta delivers transparency and freshness. The Colore shows the pure energy and liveliness of Sangiovese with violet, wild cherry and orange zest. The wine delivers an elegantly earthy side with a very delineated mouthfeel driven by very fine, silly tannins. This is a beautiful wine with delicately sweet cherry on the finish. Bibi has been making little changes to this wine over the years (other than giving it a new winery home in Fiesole) to capture an ideal or benchmark for Sangiovese. His 2021 is his best wine yet. Production is 35,000 bottles, which is slightly lower compared to the last vintage.