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Brunello is undoubtedly one of the wines that established Italy's fame as a great red wine country in the last third of the last century. The expectations we have of this wine are correspondingly high. Its storability, for example, is considered legendary.

In fact, however, many Brunellos are already approaching drinking maturity when they come onto the market in the fifth year after the harvest (Riserve need at least one year longer). The majority of wines reach their peak between 8 and 12 years and maintain this level for quite a while. Those who are basically counting on eternal shelf life could experience disappointment if they wait too long; only the best examples not only simply hold out, but mature for 15, 20 or even more years with profit.

The Brunello zone has grown massively over the past decades. Whereas at the beginning of the 1960s there were just 60 hectares, today there are around 1500, shared by more than 200 producers. Despite this enormous expansion of the area and the accompanying criticism of the suitability of many wines to bear the famous name, the average quality of Brunello is still relatively high today. This may also be due to the fact that the minimum storage time in the barrel was drastically reduced in the 1990s, which benefited the less stable wines in particular. Weak or washed-out examples are very rare today.

So today we find a broad midfield of very good wines, from which a small number of genuine top growths stand out. They are all powerful and voluminous; alcohol contents of less than 14 per cent by volume are the exception rather than the rule, requiring a certain complexity and depth to achieve the right balance. At the top of our list are those exceptional wines that also have finesse or even real elegance

We have tasted around 130 wines for this BEST OF in the last few weeks. As always, we present the best ones here and in a handy PDF. A link to all tasting results can be found here.

BEST OF Brunello 2012

  • 94WP Salvioni
  • 93WP "Pomona", Poggio Salvi
  • 92WP "Il Poggione", Il Poggione
  • 92WP "altero", Poggio Antico
  • 92WP Lisini
  • 91WP Barbi
  • 91WP "Vallocchio", Fanti - San Filippo
  • 91WP Fanti-San Filippo
  • 91WP Mastrojanni
  • 91WP Cerbaia
  • 91WP "Montosoli", Altesino
  • 91WP "Vigna La Casa", Caparzo
  • 91WP "La Manella", La Manella
  • 91WP Capanna (8/16)
  • 90HP Fuligni
  • 90WP Villa Poggio Salvi
  • 90WP Il Castellare
  • 90WP Canalicchio
  • 90WP Canalicchio di Sopra
  • 90WP "p.56", Buon Tempo
  • 90WP La Magia
  • 90WP Beatesca
  • 90WP "Vigna Fonte Lattaia",Terralsole
  • 90WP Poggio Antico
  • 90WP "Vigna Piaggia", Abbadia Ardenga
  • 90WP Carpineto
  • 90WP "Pian delle Vigne", Antinori
  • 90WP "La Togata", La Togata
  • 90WP Oliveto
  • 90WP Talenti
  • 90WP Pietroso
  • 90WP La Fortuna
  • 90WP La Fiorita
  • 90WP Capanna (9/16)
  • 89WP Col d'Orcia
  • 89WP "Prime Donne", Donatella Cinelli Colombini
  • 89WP La Gerla
  • 89WP Sesti
  • 89WP "Vigna Poggio Ronconi", Citille die Sopra
  • 89WP La Rasina
  • 89WP "Vigna Pian Bossolino", Terralsole
  • 89WP Terralsole
  • 89WP "Ugolforte", San Giorgio
  • 89WP Fossacolle
  • 89WP Caparzo
  • 89WP Brunelli
  • 89WP Fanti - La Palazzetta
  • 89WP "Bellarina", Palagetto
  • 89WP "Paolus", Molino di Sant'Antimo
  • 89WP Capanne Ricci
  • 89WP Nardi
  • 89HP Abbadia Ardenga
  • 89WP San Giacomo
  • 89WP Val di Suga
  • 88WP Agraria Musico
  • 88WP Castello Romitorio
  • 88HP Le Macioche
  • 88HP Altesino
  • 88WP Máté - Podere il Falconaio
  • 88WP Bacchinetti
  • 88WP Soccorso
  • 88WP Le Chiuse
  • 88WP "manapetra", La Lecciaia
  • 88WP Canalicchio di Sotto
  • 88WP Buon Tempo
  • 88WP Poggio dell'Aquila
  • 88WP Citille di Sopra
  • 88WP La Fuga
  • 88HP Cordella
  • 88WP Villa Poggio Salvi
  • 88WP Agostina Pieri
  • 88WP Ventolaio
  • 88WP "Vigna delle Raunate", Mocali
  • 88WP Querce Bettina di Barenghi
  • 88WP "Il Vino dei Poeti", Bottega
  • 88WP Poggio San OPolo
  • 88WP "Moz Art Wine", Il Paradiso di Frassina
  • 88WP Castiglion del Bosco
  • 88WP Verbena
  • 88WP Sancarlo

Photos: Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino

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