Had a chance to taste some wonderful wines at my local wine shop, The Fine Wine Source in Livonia, Michigan, and we compared two wines from Brunello di Montalcino.  Brunello di Montalcino is a small district in Tuscany and is considered one of its greatest wines, along with its neighbor Chianti Classico.  It is made only using the Sangiovese Grosso varietal.  In July 1980, it was formally recognized as Italy’s first DOCG designation, and today there are about two hundred winemakers there.  By decree, the wines must be aged for four years (five for Riserva) with at least two years in oak and at least four months in the bottle before the release.  Originally in large Slavonian oak vats, but now some use French Oak barriques.

We started with the Societa Agricola Altesino Brunello di Montalcino DOCG 2018, and this wine is usually referred to as Altesino.  The Palazzo Altesi which still overlooks the estate was built in the Fifteenth Century.  In 1975, there were one of the first to introduce a Cru wine, a single vineyard wine.  Altesino has been owned by the Gnudi Angelini family since 2002.   Altesino has about fifty hectares of basically all Sangiovese, the grape of the region, and referred locally as Sangiovese di Montalcino.  This ruby red wine offered notes of red and black fruits, violets, and spices.  On the palate tones of black cherry and plums, and its famed earthiness; the wine is big, with velvety tannins and bright acidity and a nice long finish of terroir and fruit.        

Then we enjoyed Tenimenti Angelini Val di Suga Brunello di Montalcino DOCG 2016 and the parent company is known as Angelini Wines & Estates.  The company’s origins are in the Marche region, where pharmaceutical industrialist Francesco Angelini took over the management of Fazi Battaglia in 1949, best known for their Verdicchio dei Castelli di Jesi Classico.  They really started to expand when they acquired Val di Suga in Montalcino and now they have six properties in Chianti, Montalcino, Le Marche and the Veneto.  All part of Angelini Holding SpA based in Rome.  The wine is a blend from three slopes with diverse soils of limestone and sandstone.  The grapes from the three vineyards are fermented separately and then maceration on the skins for about twenty-five days.  The wine is aged for twenty-four months in Slavonian Oak, then twelve months in concrete vats and at least twelve months of bottle maturation before release.  A ruby/garnet red wine that offered notes of black cherry, violets, and violets.  On the palate tones of cherry, and coffee beans with silky tannins and good acidity and a nice finish of fruit.