2011 Brunello di Montalcino
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Tasting notes
Mid garnet with bricky rim. More intense than the Rosso, more spicy and with a more obvious leathery development. Firmer than the Rosso but resolved and silky nevertheless. Sour-cherry freshness and great length. There's perhaps more current/immediate pleasure in the Rosso but this is more serious and has a longer future ahead. Extreme and refined persistence. (JH)
Critic scores
Average Score
Walter Speller, jancisrobinson.com
Julia Harding MW, jancisrobinson.com
More reviews and scores
Showing craftsmanship and care, the 2011 Brunello di Montalcino is a classic interpretation of Sangiovese from a warm vintage. It is generous and immediate with dried cherry aromas, blackberry, spice, leather and pressed rose. This is not a banal Brunello by any stretch. The more you dig deep into the bouquet, the more there is to discover. I detected hints of rosemary and sharper notes of pecorino cheese. Together, they paint a pretty picture of both the grape and the territory.
San Polo's 2011 Brunello di Montalcino is a soft, immediate wine that will drink well upon release. Crushed flowers, autumn leaves, cedar and macerated cherries are some of the many notes that unfold in the glass. A touch of new oak adds sweetness on the finish. Although not especially complex, the 2011 is quite enjoyable today.
Tasted blind. Concentrated ruby with orange tinges. A little candied and a little closed on the nose. Sweet and intense and long on the palate and already accessible. (WS)