Susan Hulme MW reviews Antinori 2021 Guado al Tasso Il Matarocchio.
When Cabernet Franc was first grown in Bolgheri it found a perfect natural home on the Tuscan coast. Bolgheri, a series of gentle hills rolling down to a narrow strip of land and eventually to the sea, is a region bathed in bright sunlight and luminosity, edged and cooled by the sea. It provides the perfect push-and-pull intensity to the fragile and whimsical, princess-like Cabernet Franc variety. Here, as nowhere else, Cabernet Franc’s natural restraint and watercolor-like transparency meet the power and energy of Bolgheri’s light-bathed landscape to create a vivid version of itself.
Cabernet Franc in this environment develops a deep concentration yet remains limpid and bright—but this, of course, is only if you know how to handle it well. If picked too early, Cabernet Franc’s green-pepper aromas and flavors dominate, but when too ripe, it becomes jammy and simple. After picking it must be handled very carefully in the winery with the merest kiss of oak. If all these things are done with masterly control, the result can be something wonderful—Cabernet Franc to rival any in the world.
Antinori’s trump card is its 4.8ha (12-acre) Matarocchio vineyard. Situated on the flatter valley floor of the Bolgheri amphitheater, it gets hotter during the day, but also significantly cooler at night, than the vineyards halfway up the hillside, with average diurnal temperature swings in September of 27–36ºF (15–20ºC). Surprisingly, Matarocchio has 30% more diurnal variation than vineyards on the surrounding hillsides here. Matarocchio also benefits from particularly deep and fresh soils, which provide the vines with optimal conditions for slow and balanced ripening even in the hotter vintages. This is where, in the best years, Antinori produces its flagship 100% Cabernet Franc—single-vineyard Il Matarocchio.
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The UK press preview of Il Matarocchio 2021 was conducted by Alessia Antinori, daughter of Piero Antinori, and a member of the 26th generation of the Antinori family, along with Renzo Cotarella, Antinori’s CEO. The preview was moderated by James Button, Italian editor of Decanter, and took place in London in November 2025 at a Decanter World of Fine Wine event.
The preview was a vertical tasting of four vintages each of Guado al Tasso and of Il Matarocchio. Guado al Tasso, first produced in 1994, takes its name from Antinori’s estate in Bolgheri, and was originally a Bordeaux/Syrah blend. But in the intense climatic conditions of Bolgheri, some grape varieties, according to Cotarella, were found to be “too exuberant,” and the Syrah has since been replaced by the more capricious and finely delineated Cabernet Franc, with the proportion of this variety increasing over recent years to around 30%.
Of the four vintages of Guado al Tasso—1998, 2007, 2013, and 2022—my own standout was the 2013. These were directly followed by four vintages of Il Matarocchio—2007, 2013, 2016, and the newly released 2021. It was thrilling to taste the first-ever vintage of this wine, the 2007, which first showed the potential for Cabernet Franc on this site. The 2013 was a great, classic vintage, which revealed a richer more complete wine and showed that here, Cabernet Franc could stand alone. The 2016 was a more modern classic, with a greater lightness of touch and vivacity. And the 2021 was a culmination of all these elements, referencing the 2007 in its fine and filigree detail and its aromatic precision, but with the intensity and depth of flavor of 2013, yet the energy and lightness of the 2016. For me, this was the wine of the tasting, a wine of great balance, harmony, and astonishing beauty.
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Tasting
Il Matarocchio 2007
The 2007 was the first vintage of Il Matarocchio. The aromas and flavors are beautifully clear and pure, with a delicate and intricate fragility. Aromas of freshly cut grass, interlaced with a spicy, delicate, raspberry and raspberry-leaf note. There is a wonderful texture to this wine, flowing across the palate with lively acidity and gentle, finely edged tannins. This 2007 is so pure and vivid. Cotarella commented that, “Cabernet Franc has a wonderful nose but often lacks the mid-palate weight and fullness of the other Bordeaux varieties—but in Bolgheri this shyness and restraint is a virtue.” Unlike the other Bordeaux varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, which in this environment can sometimes become too rich and heavy, Cabernet Franc has the ability to hold its own delicate identity. This potential for elegantly restrained brightness and intensity makes Bolgheri one of the best places in the world for Cabernet Franc. To date, Il Matarocchio has only been made in 2007, 2009, 2011, 2019, 2021 and 2022. This 2007 is more elegant, more ethereal, with greater purity of varietal expression than the nevertheless wonderful 2013 and 2016. It was an exciting promise of what was to come. 2026–32. | 96
Il Matarocchio 2013
The 2013 is a fuller, richer, more complete wine than the 2007, with more depth of flavor and roundness in the middle. Clear aromas of red pepper, alongside darker, deeper, more intense black fruits, rather than the fine, lacey qualities of the 2007. Showing a touch of sweet spice, this 2013 is authentically Cabernet Franc in a warmer climate, with a super-silky texture and weight and a lingering, salty-edged finish. 2026–38. | 98
Il Matarocchio 2016
The 2016 still seems very youthful and remains slightly closed. It has more energy and tension than the 2013, and a more luxuriant richness than the 2007. This is an exciting combination of concentration, vitality, and energy. Deep purple, with a narrow rim, then on the nose, the oak is more restrained than on the 2013 and there is a heady, floral bouquet. It is super-silky in texture, with a perfectly poised weight on the palate and beautifully integrated tannins, upright and assertive but gentle at the same time. There is a brightness to the acidity, which is currently to the fore. This is at once bright, energetic, and concentrated. What a wonderful wine! 2027–47. | 98
Il Matarocchio 2021
A deep but vibrant purple in color. Exuberant aromas of cassis and blackcurrant leaf, with notes of violet entwined with the sweet spice of carefully integrated, high-quality oak. The nose is persistent and multi-layered. The palate seduces with a luxurious, silky texture, flavors of blackcurrant, raspberry, and a whisper of blackberry leaf and smoke, embraced by the restrained notes of nutmeg and cream of oak. This is a wine with plenty of depth of flavor yet full of energy. The aromas and flavors are transparent and shine bright. A truly beautiful wine and one of the world’s greatest expressions of Cabernet Franc. 2027–50. | 100
