Sign In

2016 Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona Brunello di Montalcino

Removed from a professional wine storage facility

6 available
Bid *
Ends Sunday, 7pm Pacific

RATINGS

97Wine Enthusiast

Red-berry, wild-rose, crushed mint and dark-spice aromas are front and center on this fragrant red. The full-bodied palate is concentrated but also boasts finesse, offering layers of raspberry jam, smooth licorice and tobacco alongside a backbone of enveloping, velvety tannins.

95+ The Wine Advocate

...bold cherry, spice, crushed stone and balsam herb...delicate but also succulent with a rich and almost pulpy quality of fruit. .

95James Suckling

Lots of red and blue fruit to this, evolving into wet leaves, freshly turned soil and brewed tea. Light herbal notes. Sweet cherries, too. It's full bodied with silky, firm tannins. More minerality and tea notes on the finish. Elegant and driven.

93Wine Spectator

Light on its feet, this red evokes strawberry, cherry, earth, menthol and Tuscan scrub flavors. Shows a firm underlying structure, with a fresh and focused finish.

93Vinous / IWC

...savory herbs, exotic spice and earth tones above ripeness of fruit. It’s decidedly dark and brooding on the nose, lifted by hints of fresh-picked mint and sage...depths of velvety textures in the mouth, offset by a tactile mix of tart wild berries, minerals and zesty acidity which adds vibrancy in spite of the tannic heft and primary intensity found here...finishes with a monolithic feel...

15.5Jancis Robinson

Quite mellow on the nose with hints of tobacco leaf. Supple rich and easy-going with good acidity but the fruit is quite rich and already developing.

PRODUCER

Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona

Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragona has been in existence for more than a century, yet it is considered one of the rising stars of modern Italian winemaking. With 425 acres of vineyards in and around Castelnuovo dell’Abate, which is in southwest Montalcino, Tuscany, Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragona is run by Paolo Bianchini. Gambero Rosso, Italy’s leading wine journal, has written that the estate “continues to be one of the most representative of the entire area, successfully combining a distinctive winery style with the constant improvement of its wines.” Robert M. Parker Jr. has noted that “no estate has managed to bridge the gap between classic and contemporary styles as gracefully as Ciacci…” The estate makes Brunello, and a blend of Sangiovese, Cabernet and Merlot, and a Syrah.

REGION

Italy, Tuscany, Brunello di Montalcino

Brunello di Montalcino is regarded as one of Italy’s best appellations. Located in south central Tuscany below Chianti, the wines of Brunello di Montalcino DOCG are made of a Sangiovese clone called “brunello,” which means “little dark one,” a reference to the brown tones in the skin of the grape. Unlike some Tuscan appellations that allow other grapes to be blended with Sangiovese, Brunello di Montalcino is entirely Sangiovese. Montalcino itself is a picturesque, hill-top town not especially well known for wine production until the mid-19th century, when a local vineyard owner isolated the brunello clone and planted it. Other growers followed suit. Nevertheless it wasn’t until 1970s that wine enthusiasts started paying attention to Brunello di Montalcino, which by then was becoming an outstanding wine. Today there are 120 estates in the DOCG, up from about 25 estates in 1975. Brunellos in general are bigger, darker, more tannic and more powerful wines than Chiantis or most other Sangioveses. By law they must be aged for four years, and two of those years must be in wooden barrels.

VINTAGE

2016 Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona Brunello di Montalcino