Winemaker Notes
This wine has a ruby red, almost garnet color. The selection and harvest are carried out entirely by hand, and the grapes are immediately transported to our cellar where they start the process of fermentation. The wine is then aged for two years in Slavonia oak barrels and, after bottling, is aged further for at least six months before being released.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Aromas of blackberries, light toffee and fresh mushrooms follow through to a full body, firm and velvety tannins and a chewy finish. Needs a few years to soften. Better in 2018.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Citille di Sopra 2012 Brunello di Montalcino has a few bold surprises up its proverbial sleeve. The wine exhibits satisfying crispness and balance with bright flavors of wild berry, toasted almond, grilled herb and blue flower. In terms of mouthfeel, it shows energy and a snappy, zippy style that determines its personality. The mouthfeel is medium in length, but the upfront and frank nature of the wine is its winning card.
Rating: 91+
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.