Of the sampling of about 6 I have had so far, I am really loving what these have to offer and I am not even speaking of the big boys.
Here are some I have recently enjoyed.
2015 Le Gode Brunello di Montalcino
2015 Fattoria Scopone Brunello di Montalcino
2015 Il Valentiano Brunello di Montalcino Campo Di Marzo
Truth be told, WTSO has been a good resource for drinkable Barolo and Brunello.
That has been my experience as well, Mike - and crazy to say this, but 2016 may be even better.
So far Iāve have the 2015 Rossoās from Stella di Campalto and Pian 'dell Orino and the Brunello from Il Poggione and have liked each. And if you want to ādown scaleā a bit, Chianti from 2015, like Castell 'in Villa, Poggio Scalette Carbonaione and the Selvapiana Bucerchiale have all impressed me as well.
correct me if iām wrong but 15 is a little bit more of a riper year than 16, right? Iāve really liked the 15s but I think Iām going longer for 16s because iām more of a fan of the cooler good vintages.
Correct. Iām the same when it comes to Sangiovese, but 15 for some reason has been crazy good. Iām still loading up on 16ās though. Drink the 15ās while I give the 16s some time. Win win.
They have been great for me, some drinking well young, and mostly seeming to have very good aging potential. I bought a handful of the ones Iāve tried from WTSO as well.
This is what I have tried so far of 2015 Brunello
Cortonesi La Mannella
Camigliano
Poggio Lucina
Abbadia Ardenga
Siro Pacenti Pelagrilli
Valdicava
Caparzo
Once I tried some of these I stocked up very heavy on 2015 Brunellos, most of which I have yet to try, and wont even sample for a few years. Only thing that stopped me from buying more, was that the 2016s should be better. 2016s I will probably buy less overall, but more higher end bottles.
I think WTSOās lineup is drinking younger than the average though.
btw for the rest of Tuscuny, I took a very different approach. Mostly ignored 2015. Sampled a handful of things, kept a few bottles to drink over the next few years and put 1-2 things away for the long haul.
Then I stocked up on the 2016s, which so far have lived up to expectations, but I have yet to try most of the really anticipated stuff. These were the best Iāve had so far.
2016 Felsina Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia
2016 Grattamacco Bolgheri Superiore lāAlberello
2016 Castello di Ama Chianti Classico Gran Selezione San Lorenzo
2016 Felsina Fontalloro
2016 Montepeloso Eneo
2016 Tenuta San Guido Guidalberto
2016 Castello Romitorio Il Toro
Good stuff here.
Interestingly enough, some of those Chiantiās mentioned up top are in the $55 range. The Brunellos I noted were $28-35
Yesterday I picked up my recent order from FedEx. It was the 2013 Vitanza Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Firma from WTSO. In true form, I popped my Coravin and sipped away. Within 4 minutes I had 3 more on the way to me, still free shipping when you order from the āMy Cellarā section. $35 and amazing.
I had grabbed a few of those Vitanza too, but havenāt tried yet. Hopefully soon.
Those were my favorites so far on 2016, but really I have been happy across the board. These 3 below are about $20, Sangiovese based and excellent QPR imo.
2016 Tenuta di Nozzole Chianti Classico Riserva Nozzole
2016 Rocca di Frassinello Maremma Toscana Le Sughere di Frassinello
2016 Brancaia Tre
Mike Pobega wrote:
Any you have had and want to share here?
We have tried both the 2015 Talenti and Caprili and really liked them. They were just babyās but still delicious.
Joseph Grassa wrote:
Then I stocked up on the 2016s, which so far have lived up to expectations, but I have yet to try most of the really anticipated stuff. These were the best Iāve had so far.
2016 Felsina Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia
2016 Grattamacco Bolgheri Superiore lāAlberello
2016 Castello di Ama Chianti Classico Gran Selezione San Lorenzo
2016 Felsina Fontalloro
2016 Montepeloso Eneo
2016 Tenuta San Guido Guidalberto
2016 Castello Romitorio Il Toro
We went to a tasting of Italian wines last February, right before tastings were shut down, and had the Felsina line-up from 2016. The Rancia and Fontalloro were both excellent, with the edge to the Fontalloro, IMHO.
Maybe itās me and maybe I have not paid attention to Brunellos for 10 years, but these wines are at such a higher level of overall quality with a nod toward the quality of fruits combined with purity that I canāt remember similarities in the past. There was a time in the early 2000s that I must have tasted 200-300 Brunellos within a three year period. Head:exploded. Lol
Interesting. I had them 5 months apart, but I had them reversed. A handful of each cellared, so I am pretty excited about having them side by side well into the future. Did you try the Riserva Berardenga? If so what were your thoughts there? I thought it was a big step down but still very good QPR. Decided to allocate all my resources towards the other 2 though.
Joseph Grassa wrote:
Interesting. I had them 5 months apart, but I had them reversed. A handful of each cellared, so I am pretty excited about having them side by side well into the future. Did you try the Riserva Berardenga? If so what were your thoughts there? I thought it was a big step down but still very good QPR. Decided to allocate all my resources towards the other 2 though.
We did try the Riserva, Joseph. Great QPR. Wish I had bought more. I think Felsina hit it out of the park across the board in 2016.