2020 Tua Rita Giusto di Notri Toscana 750 ml

Despite the huge splash they made two decades ago, when Robert Parker awarded them his second-ever 100-point score for an Italian wine, Tua Rita stays out of the spotlight. That’s a miracle, considering that their Cabernet-dominant Giusto di Notri blend is one of the most masterful examples we’ve tasted in the last few years. Critic James Suckling agreed, adding this 97-pointer—tying Sassicaia—to his list of Italy’s Top 100 Wines.

When traveling there, it’s easy to miss the Tua Rita winery, which lies off the dusty, unpaved Località Notri, tucked within the labyrinthine, stone-lined walls of Suvereto—about a 35-minute drive south from Bolgheri. In 1984, Rita Tua and husband, Virgilio Bisti, entered into their project with a spirit of modesty that is belied by their current reputation. Initially, they only planned to be farmers, so they bought 37.5 acres of land and planted it to Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

However, they eventually found their way to the wine business, and in 1992, they released their first effort, the Left Bank–inspired Giusto di Notri, a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Cabernet Franc. The early vintages of this wine gave off the same character as the 2020 release: rich, sun-kissed opulence, streaked with a trademark iron-like minerality that evokes the vineyard’s silt-and-clay soils carried down from the metalliferous hills of the Val di Cornia.

Giusto di Notri is truly a best-in-class wine whose rewards will only become greater with time. For the connoisseur determined to tune out the trends and hype, this is as close to a sure thing as it gets: full-bodied, classic Tuscan nobility.