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“If you ever wanted a Brunello di Montalcino for your cellar to age for decades, then buy the 2016 vintage.” James Suckling
From one of Brunello’s original estates, the cellar-worthy 97 pt. 2016 Frescobaldi Castelgiocondo offers lush aromas and dense, ripe Sangiovese fruit with polished, elegant tannins, boasting “all of the balance necessary to mature into a real beauty” according to Eric Guido of Vinous, delivered in perfect provenance at an incredible price.
Surrounded by dense forest in the rolling hills southwest of Montalcino, the village of Castelgiocondo overlooks the 815-hectare historic estate owned by the Frescobaldis, one of Tuscany’s most esteemed winemaking families with a history of over 700 years in the region, acquiring a long list of fans throughout the centuries including Michelangelo and King Henry VIII. Situated south of Siena at an altitude from 250 to 450 meters, the Castelgiocondo vineyard spans 235 hectares with 151 in the Brunello DOCG (the rest in the Rosso DOC), planted in a mix of soils containing clay, limestone and sandstone. Formerly at Chateau Haut-Brion, winemaker Filippo Manni employs rigorous selection in the vineyard and vinifies each unique parcel separately, with only about half of the 100 plus parcels making the final cut for the Brunello. Utilizing a mix of French barriques and large Slavonian oak casks, winemaker Manni aged the 2016 Castelgiocondo Brunello for 36 months in wood before cellaring the bottled Brunello in pristine conditions for over 3 years longer, yielding energetic spiced fruit hinting of wild herbs with finessed, silky tannins, structured to evolve over the next two decades.
Described by critic Jane Anson as being “like a breath of fresh air, transporting you to Tuscany,” the ethereal 97 pt. 2016 Frescobaldi Castelgiocondo Brunello di Montalcino embodies the best qualities of age worthy Brunello, its lush fruit and mouthwatering acidity poised to age elegantly - now incredibly priced to make it easy to enjoy that trip to the idyllic Tuscan hills again and again. |