Fall 2022 Offer #7: Poggiarellino Brunello di Montalcino

Poggiarellino - 2016 Brunello di Montalcino

Bottom Line - Poggiarellino’s 2016 Brunello di Montalcino is a stately, harmonious Tuscan red wine that’s also an incredible value for under $40. This wine’s most memorable quality is its completeness. The sleek fruit, lively acidity, and smooth tannins come together to form a generous and convincing whole. Although it’s an age-worthy Brunello from a great vintage, Poggiarellino’s 2016 Brunello is an absolute joy to drink already. My notes: “Morello cherry, forest fruit, underbrush, and leather; soft tannin structure; stout mineral backbone; structured and long. Elegant, honest Brunello.”

To order, just click the one of the links above and follow the prompts. Keep reading for more in-depth information on Poggiarellino.

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Wine friends,

I love everything about this wine. I love the style, I love the people who make it, I love the place, I love the vintage, and I love the price.

Let’s start with the price. I don’t think there’s a better Brunello on the market for under $55 – and this one is under $40! That’s a (relative) song for a Brunello di Montalcino of this caliber.

It’s also from a great vintage, 2016. Wine Enthusiast magazine gave the 2016 Brunello vintage 96 points, its best rating since 2010. Poggiarellino, which bottles a reserve wine in only the very best years, passed on making a riserva in 2010, yet made one in 2016. (Hopefully, we’ll be able to offer a few bottles of it next year.)

To get a sense of the territory and the people behind Poggiarellino, please see this video Rimessa Roscioli made during our visit in 2018.

Anna Toti and Ludovico Ginotti moved from Siena to Montalcino in 1997 to retire and become winemakers. They only produce about 10 thousand bottles of wine per year, eight thousand Brunello, and two thousand Rosso di Montalcino. Like all Brunellos, this wine is made with 100 percent Sangiovese Grosso grapes.

Here’s Poggiarellino on the map of central Italy.

Poggiarellino must be the smallest producer in Italy to have an informative and stylish website. Check out these great photos. I'll post some of my own recent pictures from Poggiarellino on our social media pages.

Now let’s talk about winemaking style. On the modern-traditional style spectrum, this wine leans traditional. There’s nothing heavy, over-saturated, sweet, or oaky on the palate. Yet it’s still polished and clean. 

On the fruity-savory flavor spectrum, this Brunello lives confidently in the middle. The silky fruit is assertive but not overbearing. Savory notes like leather, mushrooms, and cedar impart a sense of balance and harmony.

Some Montalcino background I wrote in the spring:

“For the newer wine geeks in the group, Brunello di Montalcino is one of Italy’s most exalted wines, with prices to match. Rosso di Montalcino is often referred to as Brunello’s younger sibling. The two wines come from the same grape (Sangiovese Grosso) and the same appellation. But while Rosso only needs to age one year before release, Brunello is required to age at least four years.”

Food pairing: 

What could be better than takeout grigliata mista (mix of grilled meat) on a Tuesday? That’s what we paired this wine with two nights ago, and it worked beautifully. I’ve read that charred or smoky meat flavors can undermine the complexity of a Brunello, but our grilled meat didn’t have a very dark finish, which may have helped. 

Staying in Tuscany, bistecca alla fiorentina (Florentine steak) would pair well with a muscular Brunello like this one. A Tuscan pasta with meat sauce, like pappardelle al sugo di cinghiale (pappardelle pasta in a wild boar sauce), would be an excellent choice as well.

Another Bottom Line: If you want to understand why Brunello di Montalcino is such a famous wine, this Poggiarellino 2016 makes a strong case for the appellation at a reasonable price.

Poggiarellino - 2016 Brunello di Montalcino

14% ABV

To order, just click the links above and follow the prompts.

Happy Tuesday,

Chris

If you have any questions or feedback, please email us: [email protected].  

How it works: 

After clicking one of the links above, you’ll be able to request 1-12 bottles. Actually, that’s all you have to do!

About a week later, when we close the offer, you’ll get an email confirming how many bottles we allocated to your account. We will charge you when the wines are allocated.

We’ll do our best to allocate all the bottles you request. But when there are more requests than bottles available, we’ll allocate one bottle to all requesting members before allocating a second bottle to anyone. We want as many members as possible to try these wines.

This is offer number 7 of 18 during the fall season. Through the first week of November, we’re sending offers on Thursday and Sunday – with the Open Tuesday re-up coming on Tuesdays.

We ship in increments of 12. With 18 offers this season, there should be plenty of chances to get to 12, 24, or 36. If you don’t have an increment of 12 at the end of the fall season offers, we can hold your wines until the next offer season, in this case spring 2023.

Wines offered in the fall will ship in late November-early December for $5 per bottle (if you have an increment of 12.) This is about the same as the price to ship coast-to-coast within the U.S. – but our wines come directly from Italy.

Once your payment method is on file, you can make future requests with just a few clicks from the offer email. If you don’t have a card on file, you can add one during your first order. Your personal financial information is protected by Stripe.

Chris MacLean

Rob Genova

Open Tuesday Wines S.r.l.s.

Via Augusto Anfossi 19, 20135 Milano - Italy