2006 Pergole Torte

Montevertine’s 2006 Pergole Torte is also 100% Sangiovese, but it emerges from vineyards in Radda in Chianti. The late Sergio Manetti created Pergole Torte at a time when the Chianti Classico regulations dictated that white grapes be part of the blend in Chianti Classico. Manetti created Pergole Torte as one of the first 100% Sangioveses, a wine that at the time had to be declassified to Vino da Tavola, the lowest designation, but it did not formally comply with the regulations of any appellation. Of course, a bevy of pure Sangioveses followed, but Pergole Torte was among the first. It remains one of the great wines of Italy. On this night, the 2006 Pergole Torte is shockingly powerful, dense and structured, with big tannins that give the wine energy and vibrancy. Readers should be in no hurry to open bottles. What a wine!

Compared to the 2007 vintage, the 2006 Le Pergole Torte shows a slightly more accelerated evolution. This is an elegant and streamlined wine that is amply layered with dark aromas of pressed fruit, dry spice and pressed rose petal or wildflower. What stands out most, however, is the unique structure of the mouthfeel. This wine is very gentle and graceful on the palate. It does not show that deep tannic structure and zesty acidity that you sometimes encounter in Sangiovese from this cool and balanced vintage. This expression shows a milder temperament with a touch of sourness on the close and lingering notes of wet earth and pressed violets.

In my opinion, the 2006 Le Pergole Torte is one of the greatest wines in the estate's history. Towering and explosive in all directions, the 2006 has it all. Power and finesse have rarely been fused together so gracefully. Today, though, the 2006 remains incredibly closed. Interestingly, the 2006 was not well universally received upon its release, especially in Italy. Perhaps some tasters found the 2006 atypically big. That is certainly understandable. A few days later I stumbled across a few bottles in a private cellar. I bought them all. Curiosity got the better of me. I opened one of the bottles and found the wine even better than what I had tasted in Siena. Martino Manetti adds that 2006 was defined by both high quality and quantity.