Mapping MONTALCINO

Something exciting is in the pipeline. Long-term Montalcino resident and Brunello expert, Laura R.Gray, is working on a fabulous new project about Montalcino. Is it a guidebook? Is it a lexicon? A glossary? A wine compendium? Yes and no. The format is A-Z but the selection criteria is entirely personal. Expect etymology and cultural observation, and things you never knew about Montalcino The project is called The Magpie’s Guide to Montalcino and you can sign up for more information as it becomes available  here , follow Laura on Instagram  or keep an eye on her  website   (which sports one gorgeous panorama shot of Montalcino!).  After nearly thirty years of life “drowning in Brunello,” at the helm of Il Palazzone winery for nearly twenty years, an analytic eye for detail and an irreverent attitude to life and wine, this is going to be a fun and educational read. Who better to select shiny nuggets of information – and what fun for us, magpie-like, to...

It's one thing to bring back a bottle of wine as a souvenir from Montalcino, and it's another to buy a case of Brunello to store away for the next five, ten or twenty years. In a vintage with the hot weather conditions of 2009 differences between Sangiovese grapes harvested and Brunello produced in Montalcino's wineries has been very marked. Many of the wines - notably the ones from the lower lying vineyards in the south west - are unlikely to last in time (but are all the more ready to be enjoyed right away).  Tim Atkin's Brunello Report is a good place to start for some advice on which wines to buy for early drinking and which ones for piling up in your cellar.  I've reviewed his Brunello Special Report 2008 last year and extremely liked Tim's in-depth approach to the judging of Montalcino's wine. His Brunello reports give you the wine writer's ratings (if you are into numbers), but also a lot of background information to understand the reasons be...

As a Brunello lover living in Tuscany, I'm no big fan of famous wine writers. True, they are part of the business and wineries need their attention to make themselves known and their wines sold in the big wide world. But god forbid that you wake one morning to find one of your beloved Tuscan reds mentioned on James Suckling's best 100 Italian wine list - you'd never be able to drink that wine again (unless you're in for a massive pay-rise).  On the other hand, if you're new to this territory you'll probably need some guidance. Even the hard-core taster couldn't get through all of Montalcino's 250 Brunello wineries in a week long holiday. So, if you're planning to stock up on some cases whilst travelling Tuscany - do your reading up before coming out. A great place to start is Tim Atkin's Brunello Special Report. The British writer has been tasting his way through Brunello land for the last 20 years and is one of the few Masters of Wine ...

Gambero Rosso produces one of the best Italian wine guide available in English language. Helping you find your way through Italy's 20 regions, the Gambero Rosso wine guide team has tasted something like 40'000 Italian wines last year. 2350 producers have made it into the final edition of the 2013 guide and 399 wines have received the  tre bicchieri  award (standing for the  three glasses  reflecting the maximum score available). As in every year Piedmont is the region on top of the list with 75 wines receiving the prime award, closely followed by the 68  tree bicchieri wines in Tuscany (Veneto comes in third with 36 wines).    It's the producer of those 399 tre bicchieri wines that are invited to join the events the Gambero Rosso editors organize in the US, Europe and Asia to present the Italian Wines guide to the wine world.  The castle of the ColleMassari winery near Cinigiano One of the participating vineyards in the Gamber...

Whilst the wine world is waiting to get a first taste of Brunello di Montalcino 2008 and the Brunello Riserva 2007 at Benvenuto Brunello 2013 , wine pro Monica Larner has already gotten a head start at Montalcino's vintner association last week.  A big fan of Brunello 2007, Monica Larner doesn't seem quite as excited about the 2008 vintage after tasting her way through a good 250 Brunello di Montalcino 2008 (poor thing!); whereas, not surprisingly, the Brunello Riserva 2007 gets one big thumbs up from the Italian editor of Wine Enthusiast (click through for the interview with her in Italian on   Montalcinonews ).   We'll be keeping you up-to-date on what the rest of the wine world is going to say at the end of February after Benvenuto Brunello 2013.  In the meantime you better keep stocking up on Brunello 2007 - a vintage meant to last. Check out Monica Larner's  Brunello di Montalcino 2007  tasting notes on Wine Enthusiast  or listen to what she ...

Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are nice enough grapes, but it's not like they are the only wines we want to drink for the rest of our lives. Which is the raison d'être for the Italian  Vini Buoni wine guide , which  scouts up and down Italy's boot to find no, not Super Tuscans - but just those good old wines produced by Italian vines.  The Vini Buoni guide was founded 10 years ago, to give praise and support to winemakers who focus on Italy's native grape varieties; and on the ideal conditions (terroir and micro-climate) needed for these grapes to turn into great wines.  Being a lover of this kind of approach, I wasn't surprised to read the names of some of the producers I appreciate most between the awarded wineries in Montalcino. First and foremost there is the corona  (a crown - the highest score) going to  the Sesti winery for it's Brunello Riserva Phenomena  2006, a phenomenal wine indeed. Located at Castello di Argiano to the Sout...