Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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Decanter
Salicutti's Francesco Leanza says that 2013 is the latest harvest he can remember, having started on 2nd October, and the result is superb. He deemed the vintage good enough to bottle his 'Piaggione SV' Riserva, which will be released next year. Delineated aromas of redcurrant, cherry and raspberry are joined by evocative rose and lavender. The palate brings in fennel and earth nuances, and wonderously crunchy acidity with ample yet finely textured tannins. This is the essence of grace.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Salicutti's 2013 Brunello di Montalcino Piaggione shows a brilliant ruby appearance that captures the ambient light. This is a classic expression from Montalcino with seamless aromas of wild flower, cassis, smokey ash and Mediterranean herb. The mouthfeel awards an incredible feeling of linearity, precision and focus. This is a wine of pedigree that promises a long aging evolution ahead. The lucky new owners of this estate have purchased a real gem in the Italian winescape.
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.