No surprise: the Italian wines of the Wine Spectator Top 100 (2009) list are Vinum Index bottles!

Every year, the highly considered wine reference editor Wine Spectator (www.winespectator.com) publishes the yearly Top 100 wine list. This list includes the most important international wine bottles, ranked by the ratings of Wine Spectator's experts.
Giving a look at Wine Spectator's 2009 list, one finds that most of the Italian wine enties are also present in our Vinum Index wine guide.

Vinum Index wines in the TOP 100 2009 list

And here are the Vinum Index wines that are ranked in Wine Spectator's list:
- #7 Marcenasco Barolo Renato Ratti - 2005
- #8 Flaccianello Fontodi - 2006
- #13 Fontalloro Felsina - 2006
- #16 Brunello di Montalcino Uccelliera - 2004
- #30 Crognolo Tenuta Sette Ponti - 2007
- #37 Torrione Fattoria Petrolo - 2007
- #49 Cortona Syrah Il Bosco Tenimenti Luigi d'Alessandro - 2006b
Furthermore, Vinum Index "other outstanding wines" section includes the following ranked wines:
- #5 Chianti Classico Castello di Brolio Barone Ricasoli - 2006
- #15 Brunello di Montalcino Castelgiocondo Marchesi de' Frescobaldi - 2006

Great Wine Makers: which wine to choose?

It is often difficult to choose the "best" bottles released by a great wine maker. Often, it's a question of taste: the wines are all awsome. This is the case of the following two Italian wine makers, and their wonderful wines:
- #10 Toscana Tre Brancaia - 2007
- #79 Collio Pinot Grigio Livio Felluga - 2006
The Vinum Index guide includes both makers, but suggests different wines.
For Brancaia:
il Blu (IGT 2006) and the Ilatraia.
For Livio Felluga:
Terre Alte (Colli Orientali del Friuli Rosazzo Bianco DOC 2006), Sassò (Colli Orientali del Friuli Rosazzo Rosso Riserva 2004) and the Piccolit (Colli Orientali del Friuli Rosazzo Riserva Piccolit).
All these wines are special indeed.

Missing wines

To give a complete picture of this story, here are the wines that are ranked by Wine Spectator, but are not in the Vinum Index guide.
- #11 Poggio Il Castellare Brunello di Montalcino - 2004
- #27 La Massa Toscana Giorgio Primo - 2007
- #35 Viticcio Chianti Classico Riserva - 2006
- #46 I Greppi Bolgheri Greppicante - 2007
- #61 Monte Antico Sangiovese-Merlot-Cabernet Sauvignon Toscana - 2006
- #80 Argiano Toscana Non Confunditur - 2007
- #81 Paolo Scavino Barolo Carobric - 2005
Consider this: in Italy there are more or less 10.000 good wines to choose from. This little list is a precious suggestion for further tastings.