Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Wine & Spirits
2008 Brunello di Montalcino This is the kind of elegant, aristocratic sangiovese that originally earned Brunello its reputation—a wine layered with scents of fruit leather, bright spice and black, mineral-inflected.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2008 Brunello di Montalcino takes its time to open gradually and in small increments. Unlike the 2010 that never fully blossoms, this wine does reveal more dimension and depth with dried fruit, cigar ash, crushed stone and black licorice. In fact, the aromas become tighter and more focused with time, and the wine delivers good momentum to the palate thanks to its silky tannins and varietal freshness. It takes its time but rewards you with a pretty show along the way. Best After 2018
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Wine Enthusiast
This Brunello opens with dark concentration, balance and harmony. The spice component versus the fresh fruit works very nicely together, and the wine shows the pulp, consistency and grit to age for more years to come. Plush fruit and smooth tannins leave a lasting impression.
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James Suckling
This is very harmonious and pretty and underlines the finesse of the vintage. Full body, with ultra-fine tannins and a delicious finish. Balanced and delicious. Drink now or hold.
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Wine Spectator
The bright cherry and strawberry notes are enhanced by iron and earth accents in this intense, tightly wound and linear red, boasting a firm structure and a lingering aftertaste of fruit and mineral. Best from 2017 through 2033.
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.