Winemaker Notes
Pairs well with roast and stewed red meats, game, aged cheeses.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
I am always such a big fan of Andrea Cortonesi's work. Like his previous releases, the 2012 Brunello di Montalcino shows an uncanny sense of continuity and consistency with past releases. This steady stylistic focus is one of the best reasons to buy Uccelliera Brunello. The wine is dark and rich in appearance. Fruit from this vintage was smaller than usual and Andrea jokes that during the 2012 growing season you could hardly call it "Sangiovese Grosso," the name of the Sangiovese clone used in Montalcino. It is normally characterized by larger berry size, but not in this warm and dry vintage. Fruit was concentrated and smaller instead. The wine's explosive flavor profile demonstrates this fact. Blackberry and dark fruit segues to spice, tobacco and balsam herb.
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James Suckling
Aromas of walnuts and ripe fruit such as mature plums in combination with undertones of cedar. Full body, chewy tannins and spicy finish. Intense dried lemons. Burning spices. So much going on here. Such a complete and complex wine. Drink in 2019.
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Wine Spectator
Exudes a ferrous aroma and flavor, with cherry, currant, tobacco and spice flavors adding depth and interest. Taut and almost racy, with a long, sinewy finish. This will be interesting when it unfolds. Best from 2021 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.