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Antinori, Tenuta Tignanello 'Solaia' 2012
RedItaly2012
By Daniel Min · Tasted 2020-01-16 · Published 2026-09-19 · Updated 2026-09-19
At a glance
James Suckling 97, Wine Enthusiast 97, Robert Parker's Wine Advocate 95, Vinous 94, Wine & Spirits 94, Wine Spectator 93
Market note: Overseas retail: US$433.17 (saratogawine.com, checked Sept 2026; US$2,599.02 for a 6-bottle case). Solaia is made only in exceptional vintages, in smaller volume than Tignanello, and sits at the top of Super Tuscan pricing.
What this wine is
Tuscany's wine rules were a straitjacket in the 1970s. Chianti DOC regulations at the time all but forced producers to blend in white grapes, and a handful — Piero Antinori among them — began stepping outside those rules to blend Sangiovese freely with "international" varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon. Such wines could only be sold under the lowly IGT/IGP designation, yet the quality was often top-tier — the movement that came to be called "Super Tuscan." Antinori's Tignanello (its first pure Super Tuscan vintage in 1971) led the charge.
Solaia was a further step taken inside that same Tignanello hillside. In 1978, Antinori set aside the "sunniest" (solaia means "sunny place" in Italian) southwest-facing high plot of the Tignanello vineyard and made a separate wine from it: 80% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Cabernet Franc. The limestone-clay soil and 350–400 meter elevation favored Cabernet. Over time roughly 20% Sangiovese was folded into the blend and the ratio between the two Cabernets adjusted, settling into today's roughly 75/20/5 makeup. Where Tignanello builds around Sangiovese and rounds it out with Cabernet, Solaia is its mirror image — built around Cabernet and given texture by a touch of Sangiovese.
The defining moment came on 31 December 2000, when Wine Spectator named the 1997 vintage its Wine of the Year, calling it "the best wine from the best vintage ever in Tuscany." An Italian wine winning that title was unusual, and Solaia has since been grouped with Sassicaia and Ornellaia as the Super Tuscan "three -aias."
What the world says
The 2012 vintage averages 4.6 from 2,125 Vivino ratings — exactly matching the label-wide average across 41,725 ratings. The distribution skews high: 1,028 fours, 1,007 fives. Listed critic scores are James Suckling 97, Wine Enthusiast 97, Wine Advocate 95, Vinous 94, Wine & Spirits 94 and Wine Spectator 93 — every publication on file came in at 93 or above.
The flavor keywords lead decisively with an oak group — oak, tobacco, chocolate — at 1,857 mentions, followed by black fruit like blackberry and plum (1,635) and an earthy group of leather and earthiness (1,275), with licorice and pepper (495) rounding it out. Structure: acidity 3.1, intensity 3.5, tannin 3.0 — compared with the other full-bodied reds covered on this site, this actually reads closer to a balanced medium body.
"75% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Sangiovese, 5% Cabernet Franc blend, dark ruby with ripe berry aromas, spice, flinty notes." — Vivino review, Mar 2021, 5.0 stars
"At Tuesday's Grand Cru Society dinner, it was a showcase of the '-aia' trio — Sassicaia (×3), Ornellaia (×3) and Solaia (×2). 'Aia' means 'place of' in Italian, so Sassicaia is 'place of stones,' Ornellaia 'place of ash trees,' and Solaia 'place of sun.'" — Vivino review, Nov 2023, 4.6 stars
The recommended drinking window is 2017–2027; I drank this in January 2020, near the start of that window.
How I drank it
16 January 2020, 5.0 stars. The note I wrote that night is the longest of any wine on this site — nineteen distinct flavors listed out: oak, chocolate, tobacco, blackberry, plum, black fruit, blackcurrant, cassis, almonds, biscuit, black walnuts, brioche, brazil nut, black raisins, baking spice, brown bread, banana, cherry, vanilla — followed by "as time passed the acidity built up too, and it kept opening with these small, changing shifts that were so much fun." "I thought 12 years might be too young, but it was fine — though I'd love to try one aged even longer" tracks with the actual recommended window (2017–2027): I caught it near the start.
That night was a party with two double magnums in play. It opened with Louis Roederer Brut Premier (4.0), moved through a double magnum of Martelet de Cherisey Puligny-Montrachet 1er Cru 'Hameau de Blagny' 2016 (4.5) and a double magnum of Arnaud Mortet Gevrey-Chambertin 2017 (4.0), then Vieux Château Gaubert Graves 1999 (2.5) and Domaine Saint-Damien Gigondas 2014 (3.5) — and this Solaia was the last bottle opened. Of six wines, it was the only perfect score.
Five wines on this site have now earned a 5.0: Le Petit Cheval 2004, Krug Grande Cuvée, Dom Pérignon Brut 2008, William Hill Central Coast Chardonnay 2015, and this Solaia 2012. My closing line — "a Sangiovese blend is always a joy" — reads less as praise for Sangiovese on its own than for this particular structure: Cabernet as the frame, with just enough Sangiovese woven through it.
Where this wine shows up
In its year-end "Top 10" list for 2000, Wine Spectator named Antinori Solaia 1997 its Wine of the Year, calling it "the best wine from the best vintage ever in Tuscany." It was an unusual win for an Italian wine, and Solaia has since been grouped with Sassicaia and Ornellaia as Super Tuscany's "three -aias."
Wine Spectator — Solaia, Wine of the Year · Wine Spectator — The Top 10 Wines of 2000
Artwork and stills are not reproduced for copyright reasons; scenes are summarised.
Vivino community data
2012 vintage rating distribution (2125 ratings, average 4.6)
| 5★ | 1007 (47%) | |
| 4★ | 1028 (48%) | |
| 3★ | 68 (3%) | |
| 2★ | 12 (1%) | |
| 1★ | 10 (0%) |
Most-mentioned aromas
| Family | Mentions | Top keywords |
|---|---|---|
| Oak | 1857 | oak 457 · tobacco 375 · chocolate 315 · vanilla 201 · cedar 127 |
| Black fruit | 1635 | blackberry 402 · plum 281 · blackcurrant 192 · black fruit 178 · cassis 158 |
| Earth | 1275 | leather 503 · earthy 177 · smoke 126 · mushroom 75 · graphite 53 |
| Spice | 495 | licorice 140 · pepper 114 · mint 88 · cinnamon 21 · eucalyptus 21 |
| Red fruit | 474 | cherry 232 · red fruit 71 · raspberry 58 · strawberry 45 · red cherry 26 |
| Dried fruit | 126 | prune 47 · fig 33 · raisin 23 · dried fruit 11 · dried cranberry 4 |
| Floral | 82 | violet 44 · lavender 13 · dried flowers 7 · dried rose 6 · perfume 6 |
Structure: Acidity 3.1/5 · Intensity 3.5/5 · Tannin 3.0/5 · Sweetness 1.9/5
Average by vintage (all vintages: 41725 ratings, average 4.6)
| Vintage | Average | Ratings |
|---|---|---|
| 1982 | 4.3 | 63 |
| 1985 | 4.5 | 112 |
| 1986 | 4.6 | 131 |
| 1987 | 4.5 | 92 |
| 1988 | 4.5 | 204 |
| 1989 | 4.3 | 105 |
| 1990 | 4.6 | 299 |
| 1991 | 4.4 | 115 |
| 1993 | 4.5 | 179 |
| 1994 | 4.5 | 230 |
| 1995 | 4.6 | 436 |
| 1996 | 4.6 | 355 |
| 1997 | 4.7 | 1223 |
| 1998 | 4.6 | 763 |
| 1999 | 4.6 | 749 |
| 2000 | 4.6 | 1338 |
| 2001 | 4.7 | 1664 |
| 2002 | 4.5 | 1139 |
| 2003 | 4.6 | 1181 |
| 2004 | 4.6 | 1596 |
| 2005 | 4.6 | 1168 |
| 2006 | 4.7 | 1574 |
| 2007 | 4.7 | 1729 |
| 2008 | 4.6 | 1955 |
| 2009 | 4.7 | 2524 |
| 2010 | 4.6 | 1815 |
| 2011 | 4.6 | 2343 |
| 2012 | 4.6 | 2125 |
| 2013 | 4.6 | 2054 |
| 2014 | 4.6 | 1117 |
| 2015 | 4.7 | 3076 |
| 2016 | 4.7 | 1012 |
| 2017 | 4.6 | 2231 |
| 2018 | 4.6 | 854 |
| 2019 | 4.6 | 707 |
| 2020 | 4.5 | 453 |
| 2021 | 4.5 | 317 |
| 2022 | 4.5 | 116 |
My original note (Vivino, 2020-01-16)
“Oak, chocolate, tobacco, blackberry, plum, black fruit, blackcurrant, cassis, almonds, biscuit, black walnuts, brioche, brazil nut, black raisins, baking spice, brown bread, banana, cherry, vanilla. Variety flavor and taste. 시간이 지날수록 산미도 더해지면서 열리는데 조금씩 변하는 다양한 재미가 너무 좋았다. 12빈이라 빠를까했는데 괜찮았지만 더 묵힌걸 먹어보고 싶다. 산조베제 블랜딩은 언제먹어도 즐겁다.”
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→Frequently asked questions
What kind of wine is Antinori Solaia 2012?
A Cabernet-led blend (roughly 75% Cabernet Sauvignon) from the "sunny" plot of the Tenuta Tignanello estate in Tuscany, first made in 1978 and now one of the defining Super Tuscan wines. Vivino: 2,125 ratings averaging 4.6; critic scores include 97 from James Suckling and Wine Enthusiast, with every listed critic at 93 or higher.
How much does it cost?
World average pending on Wine-Searcher. Overseas retail runs US$433.17 (saratogawine.com, checked Sept 2026).
What food pairs well with it?
Vivino users suggest beef, lamb, veal, poultry and cured meat. Tannin sits at a relatively soft 3.0, so it works comfortably across a range of meat dishes.
How does Solaia differ from Tignanello?
Both come from the same Tenuta Tignanello hillside, but Tignanello is built around Sangiovese with Cabernet as support, while Solaia inverts that — Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc form the backbone, with a smaller share (about 20%) of Sangiovese added. Solaia has been made separately since 1978, only in exceptional vintages.
Links & sources
View on Vivino · Prices on Wine-Searcher
- Vivino — wine page and community data
- Antinori official — Solaia
- Wine Spectator — Solaia, Wine of the Year (2000)
- Wikipedia — Antinori
- SaratogaWine.com — Antinori Solaia 2012, 750ml
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Tasted the same dayDomaine Saint-Damien, Gigondas Vieilles Vignes 'La Louisiane' 2014
★★★½☆Tasted the same dayVieux Château Gaubert, Graves Rouge 1999
★★½☆☆Tasted the same dayArnaud Mortet, Gevrey-Chambertin 2017
★★★★☆Same producerPrunotto, Barolo Bussia 2014
★★★★☆Same producerAntinori (Tenuta Montenisa), 'Marchese Antinori' Cuvée Royale Franciacorta NV
★½☆☆☆Same producer