Winemaker Notes
BOUQUET: penetrating, very full and varied, reminiscentof wild berries.
FLAVOR: dry, warm, full-bodied, harmonious, delicateand austere at the same time, persistent.
FOOD COMBINATION: roasts, grilled, spit-roast or braisedmeats, game, ripe cheeses
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2005 Brunello di Montalcino is surprisingly dark in profile for this bottling. A sweet, Pinot-like bouquet leads to perfumed black cherries, spices, licorice and tobacco. This mid-weight, graceful Brunello offers gorgeous balance, with an expressive core of fruit that flows through to a long, refined close. The 2005 is one of best versions of this wine I have tasted in some time. In 2005 the estate did not make either their Riserva (usually a selection of barrels in the cellar) or their La Casa single-vineyard selection, and the addition of that fruit here undoubtedly contributes to the wine's overall sense of harmony. The rest of the fruit was sourced from the Il Cassero and Caparzo vineyards. Though not a blockbuster, this is a very elegant Brunello. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2020.
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Wine Spectator
Plum and ripe berry notes, with hints of strawberry jam, follow through to a full body, with a solid core of ripe fruit, chewy yet polished tannins and a long finish. This is deep and rich. Best after 2012. 8,335 cases made.
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Wine Enthusiast
Clean and elegant with polished tannins and a silky texture. Caparzo makes some of the nicest Brunello you will find in the USA. This vintage is characterized by bright berry tones and a lean but elegant feel in the mouth.
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Wine & Spirits
Muted behind the coffee scents of oak, this wine lasts on tart cherry fruit. The fruit itself is simple; the interest lies in the tannins, where a seashell minerality suggest complexities to come. Clean, rich and relatively subdued, this needs several years to show its best.
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.