Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto 2013
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Product Details
Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
This intense version is concentrated, with black cherry, blackberry, graphite, tobacco and spice flavors, yet remains light-footed due to the racy profile. Structured, yet beautifully balanced and youthful. Shows purity and length on the aftertaste, which introduces a floral component. Best from 2022 through 2045.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
There are a handful of wines in Italy that make me nervous before I taste them because my expectations are so high. This is one of those wines. Indeed, previous editions of Cerretalto have earned the coveted 100 point score, and I am astutely aware of the pedigree and potential that comes forth with each new vintage. As enthusiastic as my assessment of the 2013 Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto is, I'm stopping short of that perfect score. This vintage is something of a moving target with wines that are beautiful, without a doubt, yet the growing conditions were not even across the appellation, and achieving optimal tannic management posed a challenge to many producers. If I were to make any criticism of this wine, it would fall along those lines. That aside, this is a beautiful Brunello that boasts deep intensity and bold black fruit flavors that are plummy and rich. Spice, toasted oak and tobacco frame that primary fruit. Cerretalto ages in oak for 30 months and that strong imprint has added to the structure, depth and contemporary character of this A-list Brunello. That oak imprint is also reinforced in the wine's tannins. There's no doubt that this wine needs more cellar aging. I would absolutely not suggest drinking it within the next five years. Any awkwardness it shows now should iron itself out with more bottle time.
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James Suckling
There’s a lot in this wine, in terms of complexity, that is all underpinned by concentrated, ripe and assertive red cherries. The oak is nicely placed and there’s a sense of purpose and build on the palate that really sets it apart. High-class tannins. Try this from 2022.
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Decanter
Cerretalto is a 4ha vineyard on red sandy clay at the very eastern edge of Montalcino. It's a cool site that's very slow and late ripening, with significant temperature differences between day and night. In 2013 the grapes were harvested during the second week of October, and though not designated as a Riserva, it's aged like one.
It's a wine that takes time to come around, and the 2013 is characteristically closed, rigid and austere in its youth. It hints at dusty black cherry and wild plums wrapped up in a graphite and iron fist. Bracing acidity cuts through the intense, concentrated core. The oak is polished but needs to integrate, while stiff, sticky tannins demand a few years to soften. This is all about patience.
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Casanova di Neri farm was founded in 1971 by Giovanni Neri following the purchase of an estate in the Montalcino area.Since the founder's passing in 1991, his son Giacomo has headed the company, managing the vineyards and the cellar himself, now assisted by his sons Giovanni and Gianlorenzo, an example of continuity in the family tradition. Since the beginning, Casanova di Neri’s philosophy has been based on zonation and pursuing the best terroirs to research and enjoy the best vineyards of the Montalcino area in order to produce unique and distinctive wines, with great character.Today the 75 hectares of vineyards are divided into six distinct areas that originate unique terroirs: Pietradonice south-east of Montalcino, Cetine to the south, Cerretalto to the east, and Fiesoe north-east, this vineyard is located near the winery and homonymous cottage in front of Montalcino, and the Podernuovo which boasts the highest position on the farm, at 480 meters above sea level.
The cellar is partially underground and allows the grapes and wine to be processed by gravity. The two storage spaces for thebarrels and the room for agingin bottles are entirely underground with naturally constant humidity and temperature. The property is set in amazingly beautiful countryside and respects the surrounding landscape.The excellent quality of the vineyards, the discipline and utmost care for the vines, blended with our passion and experience have resulted in the production of unique wines of great character, with their own well-defined style, never conditioned by fleeting tastes and fashions. Over the years, the combination of all these elements has brought a continuous string of accolades by the most important national and international opinion leaders.
Casanova di Neri now produces eight labels. Three are Brunello wines, each with its own characteristics: White Label Brunello, Brunello Tenuta Nuova and Cerretalto Brunello, along with Rosso di Montalcino, Irrosso, Pietradonice, Ibbiano and Irrosè

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.