Winemaker Notes
Livio Sassetti captures the rich, full-bodied, long-lived style of Brunello di Montalcino in this wine from the noted Tuscan zone south of Siena. This is a structured Brunello of magnificent depth, with dark, brooding concentration and sturdy acidity and tannins. Matured in large botti, this Sangiovese was crafted to be complex. Pair it with a hearty osso buco, a gamey braise, or aged cheeses. This vintage was blessed with fine weather through the growing season and yielded expressive wines with assertive structure and long potential in the cellar. Limited production.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Crazy aromas of dried lemon, sea salt and cherry and delicate rose petal. Full body, ripe fruit with amazing acid tannin structure. It works from the inside out with your palate showing an amazing center palate and bright acidity and tannin structure. Goes on for minute. Redefines Brunello. Drink now but better in five years. The greatest wine ever from here.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
I am absolutely enthusiastic about Sassetti Livio Pertimali's 2010 Brunello di Montalcino. Breathe deep into the glass and this wine awards you a beautiful sensorial experience that brings you immediately to varietal tones of pressed cherry, dried blackberry, spice and tobacco. The most compelling notes however are those polished mineral tones of crushed granite and pencil shaving that add sharpness and focus. This is not a timid Brunello and you can taste the sheer power and the quality of the fruit on hand. The mouthfeel is polished and smooth with fine and exact textural richness. Bravo!
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Wine & Spirits
The Sassetti family grows the fruit for Pertimali on their northwest-facing vineyards on the Montosoli hill, in Brunello’s northern sector. This 2010 offers lifted floral aromas characteristic of that terroir. Fine tannins disperse through the saturated fruit flavors of red plum and baked cherry, the fruit fleshing out and revealing notes of anise, mint and tobacco, with a streak of graphite adding to the textural richness. The wine shows great balance, freshness and persistence, and promises long cellaring potential.
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Wine Spectator
This has depth and complexity, from the cherry and menthol notes to the earth and mineral elements. Tightly wound, with a core of sweet fruit offsetting the burly tannins. This red lingers on the finish, showing fine equilibrium and the potential to develop. Best from 2019 through 2035.
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.