Winemaker Notes
Sangiovese's high natural acidity and complex tannic structure make it an admirable ally to a rangeof hearty meat or game dishes. Go the traditional route with braised short ribs or Osso Bucco, but don’t be hesitant. Brunello benefits from a straightforward pairing, no artifice – as the Tuscansprefer. Bean and kale soup, papparedelle, or an aged pecorino, are resoundingly local choices.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Elegant and structured, this offers enticing scents suggesting wild berry, pressed flower, chopped herb and baking spice. The refined palate delivers ripe wild cherry, cinnamon, star anise and tobacco alongside tightly knit, refined tannins. It's tempting to drink now but it will be even better in a few more years. Drink 2019–2026.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Il Marroneto's 2011 Brunello di Montalcino is a beautifully polished and pure wine with an incredible level of charisma and energy that is especially evident in the 2011 vintage. In Montalcino, there are few people capable of expressing Sangiovese better than Alessandro Mori. He gives ample room to the grape's inner voice and its true personality. It's impossible to know who is the bigger protagonist: the grape or the winemaker. This is a traditional and elegant wine that exudes silky tannins and fine aromas of wild berry, cola and dried mint. It's the kind of wine you can drink, glass after glass, without ever feeling weighted down or overwhelmed. Rating: 93+
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Wine Spectator
A grip of stern tannins puts a hold on the cherry, raspberry and earth flavors in this chunky red. Shy on the finish, though this should soften with time. Best from 2018 through 2028.
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.