Winemaker Notes
Brunello Montosoli has a deep ruby red colour which turns a garnet red with age. Its bouquet has outstanding character with hints of black cherry, blackberries, raspberries, violet, liquorice, vanilla and a slight accent of pink peppercorn. On the palate it reveals a dry, warm, velvety flavour, rich in substance and noble pedigree, ending with a warm note that lingers persuasively.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Super clean black fruit and minerals on the nose and palate. Floral and herbal nuances, too. Medium-to full-bodied with very fine tannins and a long finish. This is super-clean, long and balanced. Despite the difficult vintage, Montosoli shows its class. One of the wines of the vintage.
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Wine Spectator
This concentrated red is saturated by black currant, blackberry and blueberry flavors, with notes of iron, tar, tobacco and wild herbs chiming in as it evolves toward the long finish. So fresh and fruity, it's hard to believe this is a 2017 if not for the stiff tannins. Shows superb balance and complexity.
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Decanter
Altesino’s Montosoli ratchets it up a few notches from the estate bottling. Due to recent replanting, vines average 10 years of age, and the grapes were harvested the third week of September in 2017. It is bright, energetic and intriguing in its aromas of scented violet and balsamic herbs. Layers of powdery tannins build up but there is stuffing to match. Pomegranate notes emerge on the long, lingering finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
Subtly scented, this has delicate aromas suggesting forest floor, ripe berry, eucalyptus and coffee bean. The full-bodied palate shows dried cherry, prune, licorice and the same coffee bean as the nose. Firm, tightly knit tannins provide support before a drying close.
Among Italy's elite red grape varieties, Sangiovese has the perfect intersection of bright red fruit and savory earthiness and is responsible for the best red wines of Tuscany. While it is best known as the chief component of Chianti, it is also the main grape in Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and reaches the height of its power and intensity in the complex, long-lived Brunello di Montalcino. Somm Secret—Sangiovese doubles under the alias, Nielluccio, on the French island of Corsica where it produces distinctly floral and refreshing reds and rosés.
Famous for its bold, layered and long-lived red, Brunello di Montalcino, the town of Montalcino is about 70 miles south of Florence, and has a warmer and drier climate than that of its neighbor, Chianti. The Sangiovese grape is king here, as it is in Chianti, but Montalcino has its own clone called Brunello.
The Brunello vineyards of Montalcino blanket the rolling hills surrounding the village and fan out at various elevations, creating the potential for Brunello wines expressing different styles. From the valleys, where deeper deposits of clay are found, come wines typically bolder, more concentrated and rich in opulent black fruit. The hillside vineyards produce wines more concentrated in red fruits and floral aromas; these sites reach up to over 1,600 feet and have shallow soils of rocks and shale.
Brunello di Montalcino by law must be aged a minimum of four years, including two years in barrel before realease and once released, typically needs more time in bottle for its drinking potential to be fully reached. The good news is that Montalcino makes a “baby brother” version. The wines called Rosso di Montalcino are often made from younger vines, aged for about a year before release, offer extraordinary values and are ready to drink young.