Antinori - Castello della Sala : Conte della Vipera 2023

Sleek, well-balanced and fresh, with fragrant chive blossom, grapefruit peel and white pepper accents to the ripe green melon and peach fruit flavors. Flinty finish. Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon. Drink now. 600 cases imported.

Conte della Vipera, from Antinori's Umbrian estate, is an intriguing blend of Sauvignon Blanc and Sémillon. Scents of grassy green fruits, yellow plum and white peach lead to a mineral palate bursting with energy and acidity. It's tight and slightly grippy, with nice verticality and a line of salinity. Exotic but subtle flavours of guava and mango mingle with apricot skin, green apple and Mediterranean herbs. Will reward further time in the bottle.

The 2023 Conte della Vipera is spicy to its core, wafting up with dusty dried flowers, wild herbs and crushed green apples. It soothes with its cooling acidity as a wave of tart orchard fruits and minerals saturate throughout. A lemony concentration leaves the cheeks puckered as the 2023 tapers off with medium-length yet lasting tension that calls the taster back to the glass for more.