Our delicious Brunello di Montalcino

Brunello di Montalcino is a wine, red and italian, produced in the vineyards around the town of Montalcino, a beautiful squared area placed at 40 Km South of Siena, 100 Km from Florence and 250 Km North of Rome, in Tuscany, central Italy.

Montalcino: Heritage of mankind

Vineyards in Montalcino are planted in many grounds (clay, volcanic soil, limestone, schist and galestro) at altitudes between 149 to 500 meters. This diversity dealing with kinds of territories contributes to create a complex and delicious wine such as the Brunello di Montalcino. Also, Mount Amiata defends the territory of Brunello from weather hazards like rain and hail attacks. Its the highest peak in Southern Tuscany, with its 1.740 meters of height!

Montalcino’s region was also the first Italian wine region to be awarded with the nomination "Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita" (DOCG). Since 2004 Montalcino’s region is numbered among the locations of Heritage of mankind by Unesco because of its perfect mix of vineyards and olive groves spread among 24,000 hectares.

Wine Enthusiast Magazine puts 8 subzones on the labels in order to help consumers understanding the differences of the variegated territory:

1. Montalcino North;
2. Montalcino South;
3. Castelnuovo dell'Abate;
4. Camigliano;
5. Tavernelle;
6. Bosco;
7. Torrenieri;
8. Sant'Angelo.

Montalcino's landscape. Image credits by Megan Mallen, under Creative Commons license.

Brunello di Montalcino in the beginning

Brunello is the diminutive of Bruno, a male name which means brown, the name that was given within the area, to what was thought to be an individual grape variety grown in Montalcino. A farmer called Clemente Santi in the middle of the 19th century isolated some plants of Sangiovese wines: he wanted to produce a new wine good for long aging in barrels.

In 1888 Ferruccio Biondi Santi (his grandson) announced the first "modern version" of Brunello di Montalcino: made with 100% Sangiovese and aged for more than ten years in barrels made of wood. Finally In 1980 Brunello di Montalcino was awarded with its first DOCG designation (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita).

Brunello di Montalcino: the fermentation process and storage

The tradition says that the wine must face a big maceration period, also called "fermentation", in which the skins release the flavor and the color. After that phase the Brunello is put in casks for 3 years. If you use oak wood, the wine will absorb little oak flavor, but also French barriques are good, with their typical vanilla flavor.

There are two kind of bottling: "riserva" and "normale" bottling; the former are released a year after, while the latter are available on the market 50 months after harvest. To be a real Brunello, it must be aged in oaks for 2 years and at least 4 months in a bottle.

However producers in the Montalcino area can also produce other types of wine in addition to Brunello di Montalcino. A couple of examples:

• Rosso di Montalcino;
• Sant'Antimo;
• Moscadello di Montalcino.

The Consortium of the Brunello of Montalcino Wine

The consortium was founded in 1967 as a free association between winemakers dealing with safeguarding their wine and accentuating its qualities. The consortium has favored the onset of productive fabrics brought together by the common interest of respecting nature and aspiring to the highest quality of wine. The Consortium organizes events in Italy and abroad, as well as participation by winemakers in trade fairs. It organizes public relations and the image of Montalcino wines through its press office, and distributes news and information on an official website, with many publications in several languages.