Aging in Tuscany

If you visit Tuscany, you really ought to go wine tasting. There are many sectors where they make among the most famous Italian wines: Chianti, between Florence and Sienna; Montepulciano, where you’ll also find Vino Nobile; and Montalcino, where Brunello is made. By law, Brunello must be 100% Sangiovese and one particular winery started it all, as recently as the 19th century.

Ferrucio Biondi-Santi was a descendant of an aristocratic wine-making family. In 1888, he determined that bottling a single varietal wine would heighten the reputation of the wines of the region and, not coincidentally, would reward long aging. It was the first Brunello, which can today only come from Sangiovese grapes grown in the fields surrounding the lovely village of Montalcino. (The town is worth a visit for its own sake. How could anyone skip a town dedicated to gorgeous panoramic views, excellent restaurants and wine tasting?)

Biondi-Santi is still very much in operation, selling one of the higher priced wines of Italy. There are several levels of visits available, ranging from $16.50 to $55 at current exchange rates. If you just want to taste this famous and fabulous wine, you have to take a tour. The tours are very popular, so you must have an advance reservation.

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Tenuta Greppo

The villa and winery are just south of Montalcino. We had a hard time finding the winery, as there are no signs indicating Biondi-Santi. If you go, look for Tenuta Greppo, which is the name of the villa.

On the tour, you’ll see the historic home and the usual presses, mixing tanks and aging casks that are the same the world over. Except that Biondi-Santi does not use barrels, just large casks of very neutral oak. We say very neutral because they’ve been in use for decades, one more than 100 years old. As mentioned, they take aging very seriously there.

It is in the nature of Brunello that it must be aged for a long time before release, 50 months for a regular (or normale) wine and another year for a riserva. And once you buy it, you ought to lay it down for several years before opening a bottle. The more “modern” Brunellos are made to drink sooner, but Biondi-Santi is anything but modern.

As they pour out the tasting, the tour guides extol the aging potential of their wine, saying that a Brunello purchased today will still be drinking well 85 years hence. How interesting. Steve asked, “I understand about the longevity of the wine but I’m more concerned with my longevity. When should I open it?” They thought about it and said that their wine could be opened ten to fifteen years from harvest.

Going wine tasting is such a pleasant thing to do and Biondi-Santi was a wonderful wine tasting experience full of history and great wine.

 

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