Have you had a chance to use Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine ink? If not, you’ll get to have a pretty good look at this Italian ink in today’s review. Consider the different traits and characteristics of this popular Leonardo ink choice so you know if it’s a good choice for your next ink purchase.

All About the Ink Maker: Leonardo Officina Italiana

Although they’re fairly new on the scene, Leonardo Officina Italiana was quick to establish themselves as a major player in the fine writing instrument community. Affectionately abbreviated as Leonardo or Leonardo Pens, Leonardo Officina Italiana has a historic style and vintage feel that comes through clearly in their handmade pen manufacturing. More recently, the Italiana company has transferred its passion to inks. the Leonardo fountain pen ink line is small, but continues to expand. There are currently 11 Leonardo ink colors (primarily basic/traditional ink colors with a few exceptions):

• Black
• Blue
• Green
• Orange
• Purple
• Red
• Turquoise
• Emerald
• Nutmeg
• Sepia
• Taurasi (Red Wine)

***In a rush? Experiencing a decided lack of patience? Not in the mood to read? Well, never fear, if you skip the full review to jump directly to the bottom and enter to win the bottle of ink we used for this week’s ink review…we’ll forgive you.

This Week’s Featured Ink: Leonardo Officia Italiana Taurasi Red Wine Ink

This week’s ink, Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine ink, is aptly named – the beautiful, deep red wine is a great choice for those looking for a burgundy ink color that shows up well on paper and has some interesting characteristics.

It’s Time: Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine Ink Review

This week we put Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine ink to the test. Read all the results below or check out the actual review tests right here.

Ink Review Testing Factors (to keep things scientific):

For our review of Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine ink we used a few of our tried and true ink testing supplies including:

1. French made J. Herbin spiral glass dip pen  (tip similar to a medium-fine fountain pen nib)
2. French made Rhodia paper (dot pad), for the review tests
3. Dee Charles Pen Wipe Wallet
4. Syringe (for the ink splash)
5. Clairefontaine Triomphe notebook (for the ink splash)
6. Cotton swabs
7. Col-o-ring Ink Testing Memo Notebook (for the ink review preview video, find it on social)

Let’s Talk About the Leonardo Officina Italiana Ink Bottle

Leonardo fountain pen ink is packaged in a reasonably sized 40 ml. glass bottle with an 8-sided octagonal shape. The ink bottle is heavy weighted and has both a nice feel and a nice presentation. Each of the Leonardo ink bottles is wrapped in a simple label with the color clearly designated, and comes with an intermittently ribbed, medium sized lid. The outer packaging is very unique and interesting – the Leonardo ink bottles are placed in a cardboard box that closes with an origami style folded design.

How Much Does Leonardo Fountain Pen Ink Cost?

Leonardo fountain pen ink is available at a very reasonable price point considering the quality; especially if you take advantage of discount pricing through PenChalet.com.

How Did This Week’s Ink Fair in the 1-Dip Test?

We applied a one dip test to see how far one dip could could write on paper (dipping the pen in the ink only one time). Taurasi Red Wine ink very easily wrote across the page on all three writing samples (S, X, and scribble lines) and had ink to spare.

How Fast Does this Week’s Featured Ink Dry?

Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine ink had a very reasonable dry time during our testing, showing a dry time of approximately 8-9 seconds with medium saturation. We’d recommend this dark burgundy ink as a good everyday ink option.

Does Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine Ink Bleed Through?

We saw no bleeding during normal use. And we only saw very slight bleeding during the heavy saturated cotton swab test (ONLY at the very wettest points; it was almost non-existent).

Was There Any Feathering During the Review?

We saw no feathering during normal use on Rhodia paper, and only some slight feathering during the water test.

How Does the Ink Stand Up to Water?

Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine ink is not a waterproof ink. As expected with this strong, dark color, we saw heavy deep burgundy color smearing, but the lines were still clear and legible (with some slight distortion and fading).

What About Shading Traits?

Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine showed nice shading traits during our review; the shading traits depend on penmanship, your nib, your ink, and your application. We were able to see some nice color variation between deep dark burgundy wine red all the way to lighter, dusty shades of burgundy red.

Final Conclusion on this Week’s Featured Leonardo Ink:

This week’s ink was a nice, dark, wine red burgundy color made in Italy. Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine is one of the new kids on the block, so we expect there will be more of you out there than normal who haven’t had the chance to try this ink or maybe even this brand of ink. Considering the quality and the 40 ml. bottle size, we think Leonardo inks are priced reasonably. The ink showed a reasonable dry time of 8-9 seconds (approx.) and we recommend them for daily use as well as for special projects, notes, cards, letters, and other ink projects. Also notable is the great (and unique) origami style packaging and the professional presentation of Leonardo fountain pen inks. Happy writing from Italy!

Enter to Win a Leonardo Officina Italiana Fountain Pen Ink:

Enter to win the actual bottle of Leonardo Taurasi Red Wine fountain pen ink that Pen Chalet used in this week’s ink review:

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