2015 Petrolo Torrione Val d’Arno di Sopra Tuscany 750 ml

Rich, Vibrant, and Silky Tuscan Bargain

Pertrolo’s luscious Torrione Super Tuscan just keeps getting better. First, there was a string of steady 91+ point ratings from 2007 to 2014. We tasted many of those under the stars at the Tuscan estate on our first visit in 2013. Last week, next to a home-cooked meal of spaghetti, classic red sauce, and fennel sausage, we tasted the 94-point 2015 Torrione. Fireworks. Rich, vibrant dark fruit, dried herbs, and sandalwood undertones had us swooning, much like James Suckling, who called the 2015 “persistent and sexy” and appreciated that it “shows such intensity and finesse.” This is a rarity for a $35 wine, from the estate Robert Parker hailed as making “some of the most sensual, pleasurable wines in Tuscany.” Don’t miss this.

We first visited Petrolo in the fall of 2013. Located in the Valdarno Superiore, in the center of a triangle made by Florence to the north, Siena to the southwest, and Arezzo to the southeast, this is the only notable estate in the neighborhood. But as you pull into the Sanjust property and begin climbing — and climbing — you quickly get a sense of the passion and resolve that went into the planting and upkeep of this world-class vineyard.

The estate is sprawling — a 672-acre mix of forest and hills — just 11 percent of which is planted to Sangiovese and Bordeaux varieties. After a three-hour walk, we dined under the stars, then spent the night at one of the family’s villas. When we awoke, we pulled back the bedroom curtains, stepped out on the patio, and took a look down below. The valley floor was shrouded by fog as thick as pea soup, even as the sun shined brightly on Petrolo. After breakfast, we pulled up seats at the tasting table, and would soon learn how this spectacular perch — high above the fog line — gives birth to one of the most legendary Super Tuscans.

Over the last half-dozen years, Lucia Bazzocchi Sanjust’s Petrolo has become one of the most critically decorated estates in Tuscany. Wine Spectator called Petrolo’s top cuvée, Galatrona, the “Le Pin of Tuscany.” Then James Suckling, the longtime Wine Spectator European bureau chief, piled on, ranking Petrolo’s 2011 Galatrona (99 points) and 2011 Bogginanfora (96 points) the highest and fourth-highest rated of the top 100 Italian wines of 2013!

As for Tuscany’s most compelling Super Tuscan bargain, few $40 wines come close. From 2007-2014, every release earned at least 91 points. But with the release of the phenomenally concentrated and juicy 2015 — a plush blend of wild-berry Sangiovese, silky Merlot, and broad-shouldered Cabernet Sauvignon — Torrione has reached new heights.