somewhat tannic & austere . there was some tired red fruit & oak flavors. definitely not the best ornellaia i have had. it had a very nice nose that promised that which it did not deliver. i should have drank this years ago. hopefully the '98 in my cellar is ageing much better. 84 points.

That's sort of disappointing, Gus. Was '93 a bad year for Tuscany? I don't know much in the way of Italian vintage history.

It was a decent year that was overhyped when presented. Overall, the wines showed a tannic streak that people who cellared the wines (I only have a few bottles of Masseto in my cellar from 93) hope will age out.

this is indeed disappointing news. i've got one 93 in the cellar, the first leg in a 6 vintage vertical. i was holding it for whenever i built a vertical ornellaia tasting but i think i'll be cracking it out post haste. would decanting, 2-4 hours help?

I wouldn't leave the wine sitting in the decanter. I would gently decant the wine off its sediments and serve.

thanks jones. i'll look to drink this before y-e and update this post.

frankie,

jones is right abot decanting gently & there will definitely be sediment. i hope your bottle is better than mine was. i had this bottle for several years & was really anticipating something better than i got.

gfleener:

i'm in the same boat as you. came across 93 and 94 at a store in Indy called hamilton cellars, liquors, something like that. priced at $47 for both vintages, i figured what the heck. i've yet to crack the 93, but i thought the 94 was ok, not mind blowing, but definitely a pleasurable wine, altho a friend of mine thought it was on the slippery downward slope. now i'm worried for the 93 and will hopefully try before y-e.

edit; well merry christmas, i'm no longer a wine stranger, i felt like no one knew me

Frankie, you inspire me!

I dream one day of becoming a newbie as well!

Would there be any secrets that you'd like to pass on, or should I just keep on hitting the bottle and surfing the net as I've always done?

gfleener:

well, as promised, i took the holiday opportunity and cracked open the 1993 orny. much to my surprise there was very little sediment, just a touch at the bottom. no decanting, just poured into glasses. gfleener, my bottle was slightly better than yours, at least as relates to my tastes. the nose did promise a lot, yes, more than it delivered, but there was still a little life yet. the fruit hadn't entirely dissipated, but the finish was were i was disappointed. somewhat rough, with a not altogether pleasant bite to it. this does not fill the mouth like the wonderful 97 supertuscans, the taste is short and the finish i wish was shorter given that bite. 86 points. i have to admit, i was expecting more. next up the 66 lafite.