Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Aromas of fragrant blue flower, wild berry, dark culinary spice, leather and menthol lead the nose. The firmly structured palate delivers succulent wild cherry, raspberry, tobacco and orange zest alongside firm chewy tannins. Fresh acidity lends balance. It's youthfully austere and precise, with good aging potential. Drink 2022–2032.
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Wine & Spirits
Yields were down at this estate in 2012 after consecutive warm growing seasons, but late August rains and cool evening temperatures in September helped balance the vines and preserved a bright core of acidity in this wine. Aged for nearly four years in large Slavonian casks, it presents an austere frame that gradually fills out to reveal soft black-cherry flavors deepened by notes of damp earth and subtle spices.
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Wine Spectator
Marked by juicy cherry, strawberry and spice flavors, this red is lively and elegant. Features light, dusty tannins, with the vivid acidity keeping this focused and fresh. Best from 2019 through 2030.
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.