Winemaker Notes
Pairs well with meat, seasoned cheese, and game.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
The 2018 Brunello Di Montalcino is a powerful red with fleshy aromas of red plum, sweet balsamic, leather, and shitake. Full-bodied on the palate, with notes of meaty black cherry, dark soil, and tea leaf as well as gripping tannins, this robust and firmly structured wine needs to be cellared for at least a couple of years. Drink 2025-2035.
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James Suckling
I like the transparent savoriness here, with aromas of currants, dried cherries, chocolate, dried flowers and bark. Medium-bodied, with gently chewy tannins and a fine, fresh and elegant finish. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
Packaged with the burgundy-colored label, the Tenute Silvio Nardi 2018 Brunello di Montalcino reveals a darkly saturated, almost inky appearance with black ruby highlights. The bouquet is laced with dark cherry fruit and blackberry preserves, and there is juice and energy inside, which is very nice. A second wave of spice and mild tobacco adds to the wine's volume and intensity. I do feel the oak tannins.
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Wine Spectator
Shows depth and an opulent texture enveloping black cherry, plum, earth and soy flavors, with the foundation of dusty tannins leaving an astringent feel on the finish -- so think hearty foods and protein. Best from 2026 through 2045.
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.