(WineSpectator) - Forty years ago, Piero Antinori outraged the Italian wine world with the first release of a red blend that was quite untraditionally Tuscan, Tignanello. A few years later, he followed that with Solaia, which also blended the Bordeaux grapes Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc with the local Sangiovese. Together, they helped create a new category—super Tuscan—and the future of Tuscany was set in motion.

“If there were two wines that changed the face of Tuscany, they were Tignanello and Solaia,” Wine Spectator senior editor Bruce Sanderson said. All the evidence the audience required was in the six wines in front of them—Tignanello and Solaia from 1997, 2004 and 2007—as well as in the thoughts offered by Antinori and his longtime winemaker, Renzo Cotarella.

Antinori remains the august and genteel head of his family’s wine business, whose roots date back to 1375. In 1966, Antinori set about revitalizing not only his winery but also Tuscany itself. “For centuries, the industry was focused on quantity instead of quality,” Antinori said. “I felt we needed to do something to change the situation.” In 1999, Wine Spectator honored his accomplishments with a Distinguished Service Award.

Antinori and Cotarella discussed the history of Tignanello and Solaia as they compared and contrasted the wines. They are produced from separate but contiguous vineyards on the Tignanello estate, located in the heart of the Chianti Classico appellation, so they share similar terroir. The elevations range from 1,150 to 1,325 feet, and the soil is rich in limestone and clay. The site was selected, Antinori explained, because it “had always been recognized as the best vineyard in the area.”