1975 Carpineto Brunello di Montalcino Riserva

Carpineto was founded in 1967 by two young winemakers who wanted to modernize winemaking in Chianti. Giovanni Carlo Sacchet studied oenology in the mountains of northeastern Italy before moving to Tuscany, where he met Antonio Mario Zaccheo, who came from a family of vignerons in Puglia. The pair founded Carpineto and today the company owns 1,200 vineyard acres in Chianti Classico, Montepulciano, Montalcino and Maremma. Carpineto now includes several labels, such as Dogajolo and Farnito. They remain best known for their D.O.C.G. Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile de Montepulciano.

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.