The Tb points given to this wine are the world’s most valid and most up-to-date evaluation of the quality of the wine. Tastingbook points are formed by the Tastingbook algorithm which takes into account the wine ratings of the world's 50 best-known professional wine critics, wine ratings by thousands of tastingbook’s professionals and users, the generally recognised vintage quality and reputation of the vineyard and winery. Wine needs at least five professional ratings to get the Tb score. Tastingbook.com is the world's largest wine information service which is an unbiased, non-commercial and free for everyone.
Viinin Kuvailu
The Story
Ornellaia Bolgheri Superiore DOC is the estate's flagship wine which embodies the quality philosophy of the estate.
Tenuta dell'Ornellaia's production hilosophy is based upon the belief that wines must be the most faithful expression of the terroirs that produce them. The mild marine climate and the colours and aromas of the lush Mediterranean vegetation leave a special imprint upon the character of the wines. A respect for the estate's unique territory guides all aspects of production: limited quantities to ensure maximum quality, attention to every detail, selective hand harvesting, microvinification and ageing.
The Ornellaia vineyard totals 280 acres that are divided into more than 70 vineyard plots according to soil type, exposition and varietal. There are three major soil types: marine (sedimentary deposit from the sea), alluvial (marly, sandy clays with mineral veins), and volcanic (schist, gravel and porous soils). All the vineyards are about 3 miles from the Mediterranean shore. The mild maritime climate features sea breezes that keep the sky clear, low rainfall, and long summers that favor the development of aromatic compounds.
Vineyards are planted at high density, from 5,000-8,700 hl/ha, and feature several training systems – spur-pruned cordon, single Guyot, and head-pruned vines.
The clusters are hand-picked into 15-kg boxes and then go through a selection by hand on a double sorting table, both before and after destemming, and grapes are finally softly crushed. Each grape variety and single vineyard block is vinified separately. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks at temperatures between 26-30°C for two weeks, followed by 10-15 days of maceration on the skins. The malolactic fermentation takes place mainly in oak barrels, 70% new and 30% once-used. The wine then remains in barriques, in Ornellaia’s temperature- controlled cellars, for about 18 months. After the first 12 months of maturation, the wine is assembled and then returned to the barriques for an additional 6 months. After bottling, the wine ages a further 12 months prior to release.
Wine Information
The climate for the 1990 vintage was characterised by moderate precipitation during the month of August and elevated temperatures during the final phases of berry maturation. The harvest was carried out entirely by hand, and the grapes were collected in baskets holding no more than 15 Kg. The grapes were harvested from the 1st of September to the 20th of September. Attention was given to careful grape selection and the grapes brought to the cellars were in excellent condition with 22-24.5 degrees Brix.
Vuosikerta 1990
With the advent of the 1990s, Italian wine production finally entered the modern age. The pioneers of modern winemaking had succeeded in their efforts to show the world, not to mention politicians, the potential of Italian wine production. This was demonstrated in 1992 with the implementation of the new IGT classification, whose purpose was to lift the super wines out of the Vina da Tavola category from the disgraceful Italian quality classification system. Conversely, a number of producers gave up their DOC or DOCG classifications and marketed their wines as IGTs, such as Angelo Gaja’s Barbaresco and Barolo cru wines and Roberto Anselmi’s Soave wines.
1990 was the ideal kickoff for this stunning decade. A hot and dry summer with cool nights and light rain set the stage for a small, but exceptional crop, perhaps the finest seen since the 1940s. Piedmont brought in an excellent crop for the third year in a row. However, the rains were distributed considerably more evenly in 1990. Tuscany enjoyed similar weather conditions, and, as in Piedmont, the grapes ripened earlier than usual. Overall, 1990 produced very elegant, nuanced, ripe fruited and concentrated wines, which still have great maturation potential.
