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2016 Pietroso Brunello di Montalcino

Light label condition issue

Removed from a temperature and humidity controlled wine storage unit; Purchased at retail

Ends Sunday, 7pm Pacific

RATINGS

98+ Jeb Dunnuck

...rich in aromatics of black raspberry, menthol, sage, and lavender...fruit forward upfront, with pure cherry fruit, balsamic, and black tea with classically structured tannins and acidity that lifts off the palate and a long finish.

92Vinous / IWC

...seductive, blending ripe cherries with autumnal spices, hints of rosemary and white smoke. It’s soft and enveloping, with a fleshy feel to its ripe red berries, offset by cooling minerals and a twang of sour citrus. This finishes structured yet energetic, with pretty inner florals resonating over a tug of grippy tannins.

92.1CellarTracker

91James Suckling

Aromas of cherries, dried flowers, walnuts and dark chocolate. It’s medium-bodied with firm, fine-grained tannins. Silky expression.

91Wine Enthusiast

Aromas of black-skinned berry, Mediterranean scrub and toasted oak come together on this full-bodied red. The taut palate offers ripe black cherry, roasted coffee bean and clove alongside close-grained tannins that grip the close.

15Jancis Robinson

Brooding, sweet and rich and with a hint of gingerbread in the background. Pretty much repeats itself on the palate.

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 Pietroso Brunello di Montalcino