Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2018 Brunello Di Montalcino Cosimo takes on a darker profile still, though it is cleaner, with more polish. Notes of black plum, black licorice, menthol, lavender, cedar, and leather all evolve and unfold with wonderfully intriguing complexity. It is full-bodied, although it has a fresher and more weightless feel, with fine polished tannins, rich mineral soil, black cherry liqueur, and mocha. I was surprised by how great this was. An outstanding and ripe style, it is an exceptional wine to cellar 2-3 years and drink 2025-2040.
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Vinous
The 2018 Brunello di Montalcino Cosimo impresses with a remarkably fresh bouquet of bright cherry and exotic spice complemented by hints of mint and sweet smoke. It’s rich and silky in feel, yet energized by a balanced burst of volatility, with a vivid mix of red plums and cloves underscored by saline-minerals and grippy tannins that mount toward the close. This finishes structured with drying tannins that clench the palate, leaving nuances of sour cherry and balsam herbs to linger on. This rendition of Cosimo will take some time to fully express itself, making it a rare bird amongst the majority of 2018 Brunellos.
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James Suckling
Intense currants, black walnuts and some sweet spices with a savory undertone on the nose, that follow through to a very tight palate packed with firm, comfortably chewy tannins. Powerful, austere and long. Needs at least two to three years in the bottle. Try in 2026.
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Wine Enthusiast
The nose presents a luxurious swirl of black cherries and blackberries with dark chocolate while the palate remains slightly more austere with the astringent snap of cherry skin, bitter cocoa, bergamot zest and a spicy, warmth that carries through a long finish. — Danielle Callegari
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.