Pietro Beconcini Ixe - Tuscan Tempranillo! • Reverse Wine Snob®

Yes, you read that right, this is likely the only Tempranillo being made in Tuscany, the Pietro Beconcini Ixe.

100% Tempranillo (organically grown) from San Miniato, Tuscany, Italy. The wine is aged for 15 months in a combination of French oak and cement vats.

Sample submitted for review. The Pietro Beconcini Ixe retails for 18 Euro from the winery. There is only one seller in the US according to wine-searcher at a price of $28.50. Yes, it’s a splurge but that’s kind of deal when you’re talking about a wine this unique. 23,000 bottles were produced.

From the bottle:

Leonardo Beconcini is the only Tempranillo wine grower in Italy. In the early 1990’s, he discovered very old vines, the origins of seeds planted centuries ago by pilgrims traveling along the ancient Via Francigena, which runs through his vine estate. IXE is a sincere expression of this vine that has so well adapted to the local conditions. After careful selection, simple and natural vinification and long macerations on the pomace, 14 months in barriques, 6 months refining in bottle.

13.5% Alcohol

As the label states, back in the 1990s a number of very old vines were discovered on the estate. Nicknamed Grape “X” (the origin of the iXe name), DNA testing eventually showed them to be Tempranillo. Cuttings from these old vines were planted and used to make today’s wine.

The 2016 Pietro Beconcini Ixe Tempranillo begins with a pleasing aroma of cedar and dark fruit plus a little bit of spice and some floral notes.

Upon taking a sip I wouldn’t have pegged this for Tempranillo but it sure is tasty. The medium-bodied wine is full of fresh fruit flavors plus nice touches of spice, licorice and cola. Smooth and round in the mouth with firm, fine tannins, it ends dry and long.

Ready to buy? Check your local retailers.