Showing posts with label brunello. Show all posts
Showing posts with label brunello. Show all posts

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  • Date publishedThursday, October 15, 2020

Col d'Orcia Brunello di Montalcino 2015 (Tuscany) - Wine Review



wine review is this excellent organic Brunello di Montalcino that arrived in LCBO VINTAGES on - with plenty still available. I opened this wine tonight to coincide with an interactive Col d'Orcia Tasting Event via Zoom hosted by Francesco Marone Cinzano - the Count of Montalcino and owner of Col d'Orcia - and moderated by Carolyn Evans Hammond.

The iconic Col d'Orcia is one of Montalcino's oldest established wineries and is very much a part of the history of Brunello. The modern-day lineage of Col d'Orcia can be traced back to at least 1890 when the Franceschi family purchased the property that was then known as Fattoria di Sant'Angelo in Colle. In 1933, the winery presented it's Brunelli at an Italian trade show, decades before Brunello would become a prized, world-class wine. Brothers Leopoldo and Stefano Franceschi inherited the property, with Stefano taking over the farm in 1958 and changing its name to Col d'Orcia (hill above Orcia) after the river that runs through the property. In 1973, Stefano Franceschi sold the property, which only had a few hectares of grapes, to the Cinzano family of Piedmont. Under the leadership of Count Alberto Marone Cinzano, winegrowing activities increased the number of vines to 70 hectares by the early 1980s. In 1992, Alberto's son Francesco took over and expanded the vineyards further to 140 hectares, of which 108 are designated to Brunello, making Col d'Orcia the third largest owner of Brunello vineyards in Montalcino.

Col d'Orcia is located on the southern slope of the Montalcino territory, on a hill overlooking the Orcia River and is an integral part of the Orcia Valley, the Val d'Orcia. On the property, there is evidence of agricultural farming from 400 years ago because of the very old olive trees that are planted in rows and still exist today. The vineyards are protected by the barrier of Mount Amiata (1.750 metres) which prevent floods and hail, and benefits from the mild climate off the Tyrrhenian coast which is 35 km to the west. The soils are favourable to winegrowing with fundamentally loose grounds that are poor in clay and rich in limestone and inert materials.

This interactive tasting of Col d'Orcia wines introduced the exceptional 2015 vintage of the estate's Brunello di Montalcino (reviewed below) as well as a selection of older vintages from the estate. This Brunello has been produced organically for each of the last three vintages. In fact, the whole estate is now farmed organically. The fruit for the 2015 vintage comes from the Sant'Angelo hill overlooking the Orcia River, on South-Southwest facing slopes that are influenced by the sea winds an average of 300 metres above sea level. The grapes were manually harvested and sorted in the vineyard, then undergoing further selection at the winery. Vintage yields were just over half of what is allowable under regulations. It was aged for three years in large old Slavonian and Allier oak barrels, followed by 12 months in bottle for further refinement.

As part of this Tasting Event, there are a number of VINTAGES Special Offers from Col d'Orcia consisting of many wines from different vintages in multiple sizes from half-size bottles up to 5 L Jeroboams. Some of these bottles include rare back vintage Brunellos going as far back as 1990. You'll want to get your order in today as there aren't many bottles available, and this Col d'Orcia VINTAGES Special Offer closes .

Col d'Orcia Brunello di Montalcino 2015 (92 pts)

Tasting Note:

COL D'ORCIA BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO 2015 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#306852) (XD) - $55.95
100% Sangiovese, this organic Brunello di Montalcino has lovely, elegant, perfumed and very complex aromas of red cherry, sweet tobacco, earth, and leather with touches of rosemary, herb, dried rose floral, and balsamic wafting out of the glass. It's medium-full bodied on the palate with savoury, earthy, oak, clove, and red cherry flavours. Acids are succulent and juicy while firm tannins are grippy. Savoury, bitter chocolate, and earthy notes linger on the long, persistent, and grippy finish. While enjoyable now, this should improve further with about 3 years in the cellar and drink well into the early 2030s. Score: 92 pts

The wines of Col d'Orcia are represented in Ontario by Dionysus Wines & Spirits Ltd.


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  • Date publishedMonday, December 3, 2018

Palazzo Brunello di Montalcino 2013 (Tuscany) - Wine Review

On , I opened up this lovely red wine that was recently featured as an Illustrious Italian wine and released into LCBO VINTAGES on .

It is produced by Palazzo estate, a winery located on the picturesque south-eastern slope of Montalcino at an altitude of 320 metres above sea level that was purchased by the Loia/Palazzo family in 1983. Soon after the purchase, Cosimo Loia and his wife Antoinette Palazzo discovered that some of the land is of Eocene origin, arid and rocky - ideal for planting vines. Today, the estate covers an area of approximately 15 hectares, of which 4 hectares are devoted to vineyards and 3 hectares to olive trees.

In 1986, along with their children they began producing wine. Since the vines were still young, they were devoted to the production of Rosso di Montalcino. But in 1995, the vines reached nine years of age, at which point they could finally harvest the grapes, and after a few years of oak ageing, produce their first vintage of Brunello.

The entire production, including farming, harvesting, vinification, ageing and marketing is managed by the Loia family, along with the help of consulting oenologist Fabrizio Ciufoli. Over the years, the Loia-Palazzo family and cellar has grown, and above all, the quality of the wines - including this Brunello - have achieved a high level of excellence.

Palazzo Brunello di Montalcino 2013 (93 pts)

Tasting Note:

PALAZZO BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO 2013 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#660746) (XD) - $69.95
Hand-harvested, 100% Sangiovese Grosso that spent 3 years in barrel. Complex, medium-high intensity aromatics offer dark berry, cherry, and mineral aromas layered on top of oak spice and earth. It is full-bodied, spicy and fresh and on the palate with drying tannins. Lovely cherry, leather, oak spice, pepper and a hint of floral on the flavour profile. Mouth-watering acids. Some warmth mid-palate continues through to the long finish, giving way to wood spice, earth, and cherry flavours. Approachable now, but better in a few years and will age for at least a decade. Lovely Brunello! Score: 93 pts


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  • Date publishedThursday, March 3, 2016

March 5 VINTAGES Release: Classic California + 2010 Brunello

LCBO Wine Picks from March 5, 2016 VINTAGES Release
The upcoming VINTAGES Release features classic, collectible wines from California as its main theme, while the small secondary thematic highlights Brunello's from the great 2010 vintage.

From the main theme, 3 of the 13 wines from California made my list of wine picks. Among them them is a Cali Cabernet Sauvignon from the Mount Veeder AVA, as well as the Jonata Red that is a blend of 75% Syrah, 13% Cabernet Sauvignon, 4% Grenache, 4% Sangiovese, 2% Viognier, 1% Petit Verdot and 1% Merlot. The final wine pick is one of only two white wines featured from California and is an exquisite Chardonnay from California's unofficial of king of Chardonnay, Steve Kistler.

Based on the 2010 vintage in Brunello di Montalcino being hailed as the best of the century, I can only presume most of the 2010's are either already sold out or still maturing in barrels as only 6 Brunello's made it across the Atlantic. Both of the Brunello wines included among my wine picks are made from Sangiovese grapes, and one of these wines is in Magnum (1500 mL) format.

Abad Dom Bueno Crianza 2006 - DO Bierzo, Spain (90 pts)Rioja Bordón Reserva 2009 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (88 pts)

Among my red wine picks is a terrific Mencía from Bierzo, while the Rioja is a blend of Tempranillo, Graciano and Mazuelo. From Rhône, the half-size bottle of the CdP consists of Grenache, Mourvèdre, and Syrah, while the Xavier Côtes du Rhône is a blend of 40% Grenache, 20% Syrah, 15% Mourvèdre and the rest Cinsault, Carignan and Marselan.

Nals Margreid Baron Salvadori Riserva Chardonnay 2012 - DOC Südtirol / Alto Adige, Italy (90+ pts)

In white wines, the Sancerre is 100% Sauvignon Blanc, while the Lafage Centenaire is an 80/20 blend of Grenache Blanc and Roussanne. The Chardonnays all have some oak treatment. If you like sweet wines, there is a nice medium sweet German Riesling.

That's it for this release. Enjoy my wine recommendations and Cheers!

Red Wine:

  • ABAD DOM BUENO CRIANZA 2006 - DO Bierzo, Spain (#244699) (XD) - $15.95  reviewed here
  • XAVIER 100% CÔTES DU RHÔNE 2012 - AP, Rhône, France (#437079) (XD) - $17.00
  • RIOJA BORDÓN RESERVA 2009 - DOCa Rioja, Spain (#194753) (XD) - $19.95  reviewed here
  • FALERNIA RESERVA SYRAH 2013 - Elqui Valley, Chile (#208371) (D) - $19.95
  • FAMILLE PERRIN LES SINARDS CHÂTEAUNEUF-DU-PAPE 2013 - AC, Rhône, France (#5975) (XD) (375 mL) - $19.95
  • BRANDLIN ESTATE CABERNET SAUVIGNON 2012 - Mount Veeder, Napa Valley, California, USA (#340513) (D) - $54.95
  • MOLINO DI SANT’ANTIMO PAOLUS BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO 2010 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#339515) (XD) - $56.95
  • JONATA TODOS RED 2011 - Santa Ynez Valley, Santa Barbara County, California, USA (#218941) (XD) - $79.95
  • MASI MAZZANO AMARONE DELLA VALPOLICELLA CLASSICO 2009 - DOC, Veneto, Italy (#215764) (D) - $101.95
  • CATENA ZAPATA ARGENTINO MALBEC 2011 - Mendoza, Argentina (#170035) (D) - $110.95  FSE
  • MARCHESI DE’FRESCOBALDI CASTELGIOCONDO BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO 2010 - DOCG, Tuscany, Italy (#963371) (XD) (1500 mL) - $113.95

White Wine:

  • PENINSULA RIDGE BARREL AGED CHARDONNAY 2014 - VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#211490) (XD) - $15.95
  • KEW VINEYARDS OLD VINE CHARDONNAY 2012 - VQA Beamsville Bench, Niagara Peninsula, Ontario, Canada (#438374) (XD) - $18.95
  • ST. URBANS-HOF NIK WEIS SELECTION URBAN RIESLING 2014 - Mosel, Germany (#184051) (M) - $18.95
  • WILLIAM FÈVRE ESPINO GRAN CUVÉE CHARDONNAY 2013 - Maipo Valley, Chile (#45146) (XD) - $18.95
  • DOMAINE LAFAGE CUVÉE CENTENAIRE 2014 - AC Côtes du Roussillon, Midi, France (#343491) (XD) - $19.95
  • DOMAINE LE VERGER CHABLIS 2014 - AC, Burgundy, France (#181289) (XD) - $22.95
  • JEAN-MAX ROGER CUVÉE LES CAILLOTTES SANCERRE 2014 - AC, Loire, France (#65573) (XD) - $27.95
  • NALS MARGREID BARON SALVADORI RISERVA CHARDONNAY 2012 - DOC Südtirol/Alto Adige, Italy (#435404) (XD) - $34.95  FSE  reviewed here
  • KISTLER MCCREA VINEYARD CHARDONNAY 2013 - Sonoma Mountain, California, USA (#353706) (D) - $120.95

Sparkling Wine:

  • HENRIOT SOUVERAIN BRUT CHAMPAGNE - AC, Champagne, France (#959643) (XD) - $62.95


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