Super perfumed, gorgeous aromas of blackberries, mushrooms and bark with dried flowers and crushed stones. Pine needles and flowers, too. Full-bodied and linear, very tight and long. So polished and intense. Great length. Superb. From the heart of Castellina in Chianti. Try after after 2025, but already showing incredible clarity and focus. 3,500 bottles made.
The fruit element is pure, evoking black currant and black cherry, matched to a savory side that delivers wild rosemary, iron, tobacco and eucalyptus notes. It's all tied together by vibrant acidity and refined tannins. A compelling marriage of power and finesse. Best from 2023 through 2042. 300 cases made, 60 cases imported.
The 2016 is much more vibrant than the 2015, with fresh acidity and expressive layers of wood smoke, dried herbs and red berries. The tannins have resolved, still providing structure but making the wine drinkable now through to 2030.
The 2016 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Ipsus is the second vintage from the Mazzei family’s Caggio property in Castellina. Soaring aromatics immediately announce a Sangiovese of real distinction and class. There is something wild and alluring about Ipsus that is hard to describe. It is at once incredibly polished and yet also quite assertive. Crushed flowers, cherry, pomegranate, blood orange, star anise and cinnamon add layers of exoticism as the 2016 opens in the glass. The 2016 is deep, full of character and incredibly persistent. If there is anything missing, it is a touch of freshness. Perhaps 32 months of aging (24 in tonneaux and 8 in cement) is a bit too much. Time will ultimately tell. This ambitious new wine from Mazzei is certainly going to be fascinating to follow.
The Caggio 2016 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Ipsus is a lovely expression of Sangiovese. The wine captures the slightly wild and untamed side of the grape that is so compelling, but it also focuses on elegance and nuance. On first nose, the bouquet reveals plenty of forest berry and wild cherry, but as you come back to the glass for a second and third try, you might notice more determined notes of crushed stone and granite. The wine is lean and streamlined with pretty floral embellishments over a long and silky finish. More than anything, Ipsus captures the purity and honesty of Sangiovese over a delicately polished and lean mouthfeel.
TWI
94pts
The Wine Independent
The 2016 Ipsus Chianti Classico Caggio Gran Selezione is only the second vintage of this 100% Sangiovese from a 6.5 hectare vineyard 'clos' in Castellina in Chianti. This wine will not be made every year and was not made in 2017. Ipsus 2016 has heady, waxy, polished lavender and brooding black cherry notes on the nose, with more depth and intensity and cooler, darker berry fruit on the palate than the 2015. It has an attractive, creamy texture, and a good concentration of tart black cherry and bramble fruit. Lively and bright on the palate with a little crunchy, sappy quality to the tannins.
Winery Notes
IPSUS has a distinguished power which represents its own unique terroir, Il Caggio.
Fine and silky tannins are combined with red berries, cherries and the aromas of blood orange peel. Touches of violet, roses and lavender are seasoned with delicate spices and crushed stones.
IPSUS, with its tightly-wound texture and long, savoury finish, is an electrifying wine.
A wine with great ageing potential, it is endlessly intriguing, and will not cease to delight you.
IPSUS has courage with a touch of arrogance and the soul of a dreamer.
IPSUS pushes the boundaries of Tuscan winemaking.