Sangiovese Grosso Wine

Winemaker Description

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.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2019

Wine Spectator 95 Points | This is packed with ripe cherry, plum and raspberry fruit, with floral, mineral, juniper and wild herb accents adding depth and complexity. There's plenty of energy and structure as well, providing excellent balance, with a long aftertaste. (2019). 

Monica Larner Robert Parker 95 Points | The Altesino 2019 Brunello di Montalcino boasts a rich and savory side that this wine wears very well. There is a beautiful level of dark fruit that folds into the wine's velvety texture. Blackberry and plum envelop the palate, adding elegant full-bodied volume and fine tannins along the way. The wine is aged in traditional Slavonian casks, and production reaches 110,000 bottles annually (which is very ambitious considering this level of quality). (2019).

Jeb Dunnuck 95 Points | Pouring a rich ruby color, the 2019 Brunello Di Montalcino offers an attractive nose of cherry candies, sweet herbs, polished leather, and orange oils. It moves seamlessly to the palate with equally harmonious structure and a great, long finish. Medium to full-bodied, it lasts for ages. This is one of those wines that’s going to have a very wide drinking window and is exceptional already. Drink 2026-2046. (2019).

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2020 

Bruce Sanderson of The Wine Spectator writes 95 Points | There's bright cherry and strawberry fruit in this elegant red, along with rose, mineral and wild herb notes, plus a hint of black pepper. Harmonious and vibrant, this is fluid while cruising to the long, detailed aftertaste.

James Suckling 93 Points | A crisp and fruity Brunello for this hot vintage, with vivid acidity and fine tannins. Medium-bodied, integrated and focused. Yet, it needs another two or three years to come together.

Audrey Frick of Jeb Dunnuck writes 92 Points | The 2020 Brunello Di Montalcino is a transparent bright red color and is ripe with aromas of strawberry preserve, candied flowers, sweet herbs, and mossy earth. Medium-framed, it's vibrant on the palate, with a linear feel, fine tannins, and bright acidity, leading with notes of orange citrus through a rather long finish and a touch of warmth. It retains good purity and energy and is very well balanced.

Winemaker Description 

Camigliano is one of the most historic estates in Montalcino. Acquired in 1957 by entrepreneur Walter Ghezzi, Camigliano was converted over time to the production of high quality wines, in particular of Brunello di Montalcino. The 1,300 acre estate is planted with over 220 acres of vineyards, 200 of which are Sangiovese vineyards.

Our Professional Review

Bart Hopkins 67Wine.com | A rich, savory Brunello di Montalcino that is already drinking perfectly. Powerful yet elegant with maraschino cherry and ripe black fruit flavors accented with roasted herbs, wild rose petals, leather sandalwood and earthy spice. The tannins are ripe and supple , with good depth of flavor and a robust finish.
Bart Hopkins.

Expert Review

94 Points Wine Enthusiast | The nose is primarily savory, with aromas of coffee, herbs and soil, but also has the fresh gleam of wild cherries. On the palate, an emergent orange-peel element bolsters the cherry note, at least until a bitter finish of dark chocolate and espresso. Spice blazes behind dense, grippy tannins. (2018).

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2019

95 Points Kerin O'Keeff of The Wine Advocate  | The 2019 Brunello from La Gerla shows polish and intensity, offering aromas and flavors of ripe black cherry, blackberry, underbrush, camphor and licorice. Firm, close-grained tannins and vibrant acidity provide support and energy. It’s still brooding and needs time to fully develop. Drink 2029–2039. 

94 Points Jeb Dunnuck | A lovely mix of floral and herbaceous aromas lift from the 2019 Brunello Di Montalcino, which displays a ruby color and offers notes of wild raspberry, herbes de Provence, wet stones, and licorice. Medium to full-bodied, it’s enticing on the palate, with crunchy fresh acidity, ripe tannins, and a long finish that closes with a quenching saline lift. This vintage offers such wonderful aromatics, and this wine is no exception, with a pure nature all throughout. Drink 2025-2035.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2016

James Suckling 94 Points | Plenty of ripe and fresh fruit with citrus and rose aromas that follow through to a medium body with fine tannins and a bright, vivid finish. Hints of orange-peel and light pie-crust flavors in the aftertaste.

Kerin O'Keefe of the Wine Enthusiast 91 Points | Aromas of black-skinned berries, new leather and spice shape the nose. The chewy palate offers dried black cherry, tobacco and vanilla alongside polished tannins. Drink 2023–2031.

Expert Ratings - Vintage 2019

Jeb Dunnuck 94 Points |  The 2019 Rosso Di Montalcino is ripe but energetic, with pure red cherry, rose petal, orange peel, and white pepper. It is medium-bodied, with elegant ripe raspberry with a graceful feel. Seamless, with fine tannins, it is supple and soft in its texture and raises the bar in a big way for the category. 6,700 bottles were produced. 

Vinous 93 Points |  An unbelievably pretty blend of dusty rose, cherry and sage wafts up from the 2019 Rosso di Montalcino. It’s strikingly beautiful and graceful within, silky yet cool-toned, mixing saline-tinged minerals with ripe red fruits and floral nuances that resonate throughout. The 2019 finishes structured yet potent and long, leaving lingering dried cherry and licorice notes. Cellaring will be required, but with that said, this is a Rosso of astonishing depth and complexity.

Winemaker Description

The Pian dell Orino estate is adjacent to the Biondi Santi property. This area has a long history of being particularly suited for growing grapes for high quality wines. Husband and wife team Caroline and Jan's love for Tuscany and passion for viticulture binds them particularly to this land, their vines and the resulting wines. 

The wines are produced from four different vineyards that have a total area of 6 hectares. From the beginning they studied the soil and the structure of each vineyard in order to fully understand its characteristics. Fossils, petrified shells and chalk sediment all testify to the earth’s evolutions and recount marine flooding and periods of drought in the area. 

The wines are produced from four different vineyards that have a total area of 6 hectares. From the beginning they studied the soil and the structure of each vineyard in order to fully understand its characteristics. Fossils, petrified shells and chalk sediment all testify to the earth’s evolutions and recount marine flooding and periods of drought in the area. 

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2019

The Wine Advocate 97 Points |  From a beautiful site that must be seen to be believed, the Altesino 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli is redolent with dark fruit, blackcurrant and crushed slate. The mineral element of Montosoli and its schistic galestro-rich soils comes through beautifully in this vintage to add a linear sense of immediacy and verticality to the bouquet. The mouthfeel is especially elegant, and the wine's acidity is delivered expertly to showcase freshness but more importantly to highlight the quality of the fruit. The effect is very tonic and bright, and you get hints of baked brioche or oven-baked Italian focaccia bread, thanks to careful aging in Slavonian oak. This is a 12,000-bottle release.

Vinous 97 Points | An enticing blend of steeped plums, blood orange, sage and sweet smoke makes the 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli a total pleasure on the nose. Elegant and soothing, it flows across the palate with a silken wave of ripe red fruits and spices as saline minerals slowly saturate under an air of violet inner florals.

Decanter 95 Points | Elisabetta Gnudi took over the Altesino estate in 1992 and has continued with the Montosoli bottling, which has been produced since 1975. The 2019, harvested at the very end of September, is introverted to start with but the nose eventually hints at porcini with liquorice root and bark. Sleek cherry and raspberry provide the backdrop on the palate, yet that appealing earthy tone pervades. Racy with smooth, vertical tannins clinging in all the right places, it displays cleverly balanced structure and stuffing.

Winemaker Description 

One of the most sought after wines from Montalcino, Montosoli is consistently a blockbuster red. Its intense ruby red color tends towards elegant garnet with age. On the nose, it shows a complex personality with a delicious blend of black cherry, raspberry, violet, licorice, vanilla and black pepper. Extremely enticing, opulent and elegant on the palate, with a warm, long-lasting finish, Montosoli is a wine for special occasions

Pair this wine with beef bourguignon and stroganoff, lamb shank, and roasted rabbit.

Expert Review - Vintage 2022

Jeb Dunnuck 90 Points | The 2022 Rosso Di Montalcino is a delightful offering. Pouring a youthful ruby color, it reveals a fruity bouquet of candied raspberries, roses, and spiced orange. Medium-bodied, it boasts an elegant mouthfeel, fine tannins, a juicy mid-palate, and a clean finish. It's drinking fantastically now and will continue to drink well over the next 5-6 years.

Vinous 90 Points | The 2022 Rosso di Montalcino is mentholated and fresh, with dried strawberries and crushed stones wafting up from the glass. This is soft-textured and pure in feral form, with ripe red berries and spices cascading throughout. It leaves a gentle tension and crunchy sensation while tapering off poised and with medium length.

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2019

Audrey Frick of Jeb Dunnuck writes 100 Points | The 2019 Brunello Di Montalcino Vigneti Del Versante is also a jeweled ruby color and is aromatic of kirsch, fresh flowers, sweet herbs, and toasted rosemary. It's full-bodied on the palate, with a compact and concentrated feel, well-defined tannins, and an extraordinarily long finish. As it opens, it continuously evolves in the glass, with pristine notes of licorice shining through, and becomes even more focused and pristine over time. In my book, this wine flirts with perfection and is more than deserving of top marks. Drink over the coming 2-3 decades..." 01/25

Eric Guido of Vinous writes 97 Points | Nuances of dusty florals, rosemary, sage, clove and leather give way to dried strawberry aromas as the radiant 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Vigneti del Versante blossoms in the glass. It's silky-smooth and deep, displaying extraordinary elegance. Soothingly soft textures, ripe red and blue fruit notes and a kick of vibrant acidity provide fantastic energy. Sweet, crunchy tannins steadily build toward the violet-tinged finale, tapering off with hints of blood orange and spice. In a word, spellbinding… I've been tasting the 2019 Brunellos at Pian dell'Orino over the past two years as they've slowly evolved in bottle. Last year, I mused over the Vigneti di Versante's classy profile and potential, as well as the Bassolino di Sopra's flirtations with perfection. The former may find its way there in time. Collectors will want to snatch up both of these upon release in 2025.

Winemaker Description

The Pian dell Orino estate is adjacent to the Biondi Santi property. This area has a long history of being particularly suited for growing grapes for high quality wines. Husband and wife team Caroline and Jan's love for Tuscany and passion for viticulture binds them particularly to this land, their vines and the resulting wines. 

The wines are produced from four different vineyards that have a total area of 6 hectares. From the beginning they studied the soil and the structure of each vineyard in order to fully understand its characteristics. Fossils, petrified shells and chalk sediment all testify to the earth’s evolutions and recount marine flooding and periods of drought in the area. 

The wines are produced from four different vineyards that have a total area of 6 hectares. From the beginning they studied the soil and the structure of each vineyard in order to fully understand its characteristics. Fossils, petrified shells and chalk sediment all testify to the earth’s evolutions and recount marine flooding and periods of drought in the area. 

Expert Reviews - Vintage 2017

Jeb Dunnuck 96 Points | The 2017 Brunello Di Montalcino is surprising in its freshness, considering the warmth of the vintage, and speaks to the cooler, northern-facing exposition of the estate. It is refined with ripe red cherry, raspberry, anise, and incense and is fresh with cherry fruit, warming spices, macchia, and herbes de Provence. It is ripe though it maintains a medium frame, with well-managed tannins and balanced acidity. It is a lovely and charming wine and is rather approachable now. Drink 2024-2040.

Monica Lerner of The Wine Advocate writes 96 Points | A delicately sweet note of fresh summer cherry is a precursor to budding complexity and a very articulate bouquet that opens quickly in the glass. Immediately pleasing fruit is a characteristic of the 2017 growing season that had above average temperatures and drought throughout the summer. The resistant 2017 Brunello di Montalcino takes on these challenges without missing a beat. The wine's celebrated acidity and its small berry nuances remain intact. The tannins are silky and the wine's flavors fade slowly even after you have taken your last sip.

James Suckling 96 Points | Sweet berry, orange peel, cedar, bark and forest flower aromas follow through to a medium to full body, with linear and fine tannins and a crunchy undertone. It’s very subtle and fresh for a 2017. Crisp and vivid. It’s refined and acid-driven. Needs three to four years more to soften. Try after 2026.

Expert Reviews

Robert Parker 95 Points | Poggio di Sotto doesn't miss a beat with this very special release. This is a glorious expression of the vintage, and the wine has absorbed the golden sunlight of Tuscany, delivering beautifully ripe, round and subtle fruit layers. The 2015 Brunello di Montalcino shows concentration, but not too much, and richness, but not too much. You get the power and the opulence of the vintage presented with the elegance and grace that is the house style at this venerated estate. Poggio di Sotto is one of the benchmarks of Montalcino, and the winery team continues the tradition with this 22,000-bottle release. There's a lot of red fruit energy deep inside that should stir this wine on course as it ages over the next two decades. (2015).

Decanter 96 Points | On steep slopes in the southeast of Montalcino, Poggio di Sotto's vineyards are cooled by breezes coming off the nearby Monte Amiata. The Brunello is crafted from plots that range in altitude from 200 to 450 metres. Fermentations are spontaneous, maceration lasts one month and ageing is in 30-hectolitre Slavonian oak casks. This demonstrates the generosity of the vintage but is still fresh and graceful. Sweet fennel, underbrush and thyme blossoms give intricacy to pure red cherry fruit. Abundant chalky tannins build stealthily across the palate and provide a welcome dimension of texture, while Sangiovese's appetising juiciness shines through. (2015).

James Suckling 94 Points | There’s a real Burgundian feel here to the sour cherries, five spice, citrus, nutmeg and fresh oregano. The tannins have a beautiful, porcelain-like feel; the acidity cuts a wide and long shape. Delicate, floral and refined. All about grace and elegance. Drink from 2021. (2015).

Expert Reviews

98+ Points Robert Parker | The Biondi-Santi 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva is initially a reticent wine and one that does not immediately subscribe to the overstated abundance and exuberance of the vintage. Give it time. I wrote this review after several tastings over several days so I could ensure a more accurate account of the wine's elegant reveal. Contemplative and exceedingly nuanced in personality, with wild berry, underbrush, ferrous earth and candied orange peel, this has everything to look forward to in terms of its future evolution in the bottle. It displays a pretty ruby color that borders on garnet and polished copper. A silky, mid-weight palate is accented by beautifully managed and silky tannins (this aspect of the mouthfeel is extraordinary), bright freshness and long-lasting fruit momentum. The alcohol is a bit more powerful in this release (at 14.5%), but the effect is supple and smooth nonetheless. I tasted bottle number 256.

James Suckling 97 Points | Complex yet pure, subtle and refined nose that gently evolves, with mossy red cherries, dried roses, chalk, tar and dried orange peel. There is a lift of clove and eucalyptus that makes it so distinctive. A powerful, medium-to full-bodied Brunello, but seamless and bright, with a fine, transparent mid-palate and restrained, mineral austerity. Understated complexity that will need time to bloom. Hold until 2026.

Vinous 97 Points | The 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva pulls you close to the glass with a deep and seductive display of black raspberry preserves complemented by sweet sage, dried roses and pipe tobacco. With further coaxing, it gains in volume and lift, taking on hints of mint and camphor. This greets the palate with undeniable elegance, casting velvety waves of violet-tinged wild berries and sweet spices across a motivating core of juicy acidity, as a subtle coating of round tannins forms toward the close. While structured and incredibly long, energy remains high, as nuances of cherry pits offset by sour citrus and hints of cedar fade. It’s amazing to experience such energy and purity from a young Biondi Santi Riserva. As pretty as the Annata released last year was, I worried that the extended aging for the Riserva might rob the wine of some of its fruit; instead it is the complete opposite, as this contains the depth and complexity of the best wines of the vintage. I can’t wait to see how the 2015 matures over the next several decades. -- Eric Guido 

Wine Enthusiast 97 Points | New leather, pressed rose and mature berry aromas slowly appear in the glass along with whiffs of underbrush and pipe tobacco. On the structured, elegant palate, firm but ultrarefined tannins provide the backbone for juicy Morello cherry, crushed raspberry, licorice and cake spice. While it promises decades of evolution, it's already rewarding and almost at the start of its long drinking window. Drink 2025–2045. Kerin O’Keefe 

Wine Spectator 96 Points | Round and fruity, with an accent of white pepper against cherry, raspberry and floral flavors. Elegant and verging on racy, with a firm, well-integrated structure and excellent length on the minerally finish. Best from 2025 through 2048. — B.S.