Winemaker Notes
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
I like the juiciness and tension from this Rosso, which also shows ripeness from berry and cherry fruit. A touch of iron and spices at the same time. Fine grained on the palate, with a medium to full body and a pretty long finish. There is gravity from the tannins.
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Vinous
The 2022 Rosso di Montalcino entices with a whiff of mint leaf and sage before giving way to crushed black cherries, clove and white smoke. This shows the ripeness of the vintage in a beautifully balanced package, with mineral-laced red and blue fruits that swirl across textures of pure silk. It finishes incredibly long, repeating its mineral strength. Sweet tannins linger through the violet-tinged finale. Rating: 92+
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.