2018 Altesino Brunello di Montalcino Tuscany

Winemaker Notes: Brunello di Montalcino is the ambassador of top quality Italian wines around the world, the first wine to receive the DOCG appellation. Brunello is a brilliant ruby red colour, tending towards garnet red with age. Its bouquet is intense, pure, pleasant and refined, reminiscent of sweet violet, tobacco, chocolate and pleasant hints of wild berries and vanilla. Its flavour fully confirms the above in a well-balanced, full-bodied wine with good tannins and a solid structure.

WINE DESCRIPTION

Brunello is considered among Italy's top-quality wines. Made from 100% Sangiovese Grosso grapes hand-harvested from the Altesino, Castelnuovo dell'Abate, Macina, and Pianezzine vineyards, this wine is an example of finesse and elegance inherent to Montalcino's best vineyard sites.

TASTING NOTES

Ruby-red with a garnet rim, this wine's bouquet displays ample aromas of violet, wild berries, tobacco, chocolate, and vanilla. On the palate, Altesino Brunello is rich, full-bodied, and velvety.

FOOD PAIRING

With velvety tannins, balanced acidity, and supple body, this Brunello is the wine of choice for rich dishes such as osso bucco, pot roasts, barbecues, and beef stew.

CRITICAL ACCLAIM


James Suckling - "This has fantastic intensity with concentrated hazelnut, chocolate and dark berry aromas alongside dried flower and dried orange undertones. Firm and medium- to full-bodied, with powerful yet integrated tannins. Excellent structural integrity."


Jeb Dunnuck - "The 2018 Brunello Di Montalcino is a medium ruby hue, with aromas of licorice, dried red flowers, red cherry, and dusty earth. Medium-bodied, with fine tannins, it is approachable with its more delicate nature and fresh acidity. It has no harsh edges and offers notes of ripe raspberry, blood orange, and tea leaf. This is a lovely wine to drink now or over the next 10 to 12 years."


Robert Parker's Wine Advocate - "The Altesino 2018 Brunello di Montalcino is an especially graceful wine with tart fruit, clean mineral lines and a mid-weight approach. Like other wines from this vintage, the 2018s are more accessible than, say, the 2016s or the 2013s. You can drink the wine soon or choose to cellar it a bit longer. The young tannins are nearly fully approachable, and the wine ends with dryness and ample freshness."


Wine Spectator - "Rich and fruity, evoking plum, cherry, iron, tobacco and eucalyptus flavors. This has a bit more flesh to offset the dusty tannins, with a lingering, fresh finish. Best from 2025 through 2042."


Vinous - "Wild strawberries, roses, lavender and hints of flowery underbrush form a vividly fruity yet earthy bouquet as the 2018 Brunello di Montalcino opens in the glass. This is round, nearly juicy in character, with ripe red and black berries that cascade across a core of silty minerality. It leaves only a light coating of tannin while tapering off with a flourish of inner sweetness and floral tones, as nuances of licorice slowly fade. This may not be a classic Brunello from Altesino, but I can't argue with how incredibly delicious it is."