Tenuta San Leonardo, San Leonardo, 2021 - 6L
Tenuta San Leonardo, San Leonardo, 2021 - 6L
- 600cl
- 13%
- Red Still
- Cabernet Sauvignon, Carménère, Merlot
- Organic
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Optimal drinking window: 2028 - 2055
San Leonardo is the wine that made northern Italy sit up and rethink what Bordeaux varieties could do south of the Alps. From the Guerrieri Gonzaga family's estate in the Lagarina Valley in Trentino, it is a Cabernet Sauvignon-led blend with Carménère and Merlot, aged in French barriques with the kind of unhurried precision that most Italian estates reserve for Barolo.
“…one of the great wines of Italy… Sassicaia and San Leonardo seem like brothers separated in childhood.”
Monica Larner, Wine Advocate
"One of my personal favourite Italian wines, unquestionably the top winery in the region and renowned as one of the most consistent – stylistically and qualitatively – in the whole of Italy, YET its wines remain extremely well-priced by comparison to more widely publicised names."
Tom Harrow, Honest Grapes Wine Director
San Leonardo’s outstanding Bordeaux blend has received ‘Tre Bicchiere’ from Gambero Rosso for an extraordinary 25 vintages, and was also numbered among the Guide’s ‘Fifty Wines which changed Italy’.
Eric Guido for Vinous, after a 28-vintage vertical, said “If you enjoy classic Bordeaux, if you enjoy the energy and verve of Italian wine, and if you crave experiencing history in a bottle, then you should seek out Tenuta San Leonardo”. He also concluded “I frankly don’t remember the last time I found so much pleasure in tasting for hours on end”.
What the critics say:
"A complex style with a spicy nose, showing lots of toasty aromas, red and black currants, pure leather and a whiff of leaves typical of this wine. Medium-bodied, silky and soft with sleek, elegant tannins and midpalate weight. Brilliant integrated acidity tingles in the superpolished, amazingly long finish of licorice and dark fruit. Drink or hold."
"Slightly riper on the nose than both 2019 and 2020, the 2021 San Leonardo shows notes of blackberry yoghurt, graphite-laced cassis and cedar mingling with signature bell pepper touches from the generous Carmenere component, and a refreshing balsamic lift. Powdery dark chocolate and undergrowth add further complexity as it breathes. The palate is more tightly wound than the aromatics suggest: bright acidity runs alongside grippy yet fully integrated tannins, supported by just enough creamy, structural red and black fruit to avoid austerity. At 13% alcohol, the finish is ample rather than warm, with a peppery echo bringing extra liveliness, and a saline edge carrying through the aftertaste. A multilayered, shape-shifting San Leonardo that won't require long ageing to be fully enjoyable – yet it has the energy and depth to last several decades."
The San Leonardo vineyards sit in the Lagarina Valley at the southern tip of Trentino, where the valley acts as a natural corridor between the Alps and Lake Garda, moderating temperatures and providing excellent diurnal swings. Soils are a mix of alluvial gravels, moraines, and clay deposits, not unlike the better stretches of the Médoc in structure if not in geology. The altitude and cool Alpine influence extend the growing season considerably, giving the grapes time to develop full flavour without losing the fresh acidity that defines the wine's character.
San Leonardo sits within the broader Trentino DOC but is labelled as an IGT Vigneti delle Dolomiti, which gives the estate the freedom to blend Cabernet Sauvignon, Carménère, and Merlot without the constraints of a more prescriptive DOC framework. This kind of flexible IGT designation became the vehicle of choice for Italy's most ambitious producers in the 1980s and 1990s, allowing them to prioritise quality over bureaucratic compliance. It places San Leonardo in the same conceptual bracket as the Tuscan Super Tuscans, though the wine's personality is entirely its own.
The 2021 growing season in Trentino started promisingly with a mild winter and early budbreak, only to face late spring frosts that caught many growers off guard. Summer brought intense heat waves interspersed with timely rainfall that kept the vines hydrated without encouraging rot. The Alps provided their usual moderating influence, but temperatures still spiked well above average in July, pushing some vineyards to their limits before cooler nights in late August and September rescued the ripening process.
What emerged was a vintage of surprising concentration and freshness, particularly for the indigenous varieties that thrive in these mountain foothills. The Pinot Grigio shows more texture and mineral backbone than usual, while Teroldego delivered wines with proper mountain structure rather than the soft, jammy character that can plague hot years. Most 2021s are drinking beautifully now, offering immediate pleasure with enough acidity to carry them until 2028, though the best Teroldego and Lagrein examples will reward patience for another few years.
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