AG's Take On 2010 Brunello: Fair And Balanced?

Frank_Drew · February 21, 2015, 2:51pm

Here’s some love: I had a 1997 Fattoi Brunello a few weeks ago and it was sensational – the tannins has resolved a lot since the last bottle I opened in 2005 but it was very bright and had tons of energy left… we had it alongside a 2001 Fonterutoli Siepi and one of our party said about the Fattoi, “Well, this one’s a Ferrari!”

G_Keeler · February 21, 2015, 2:54pm

I’m surprised to hear that and would be interested to know some of the producers you have had that experience with. I’ve had a fair amount of Brunello over the last 3 years from the 80’s, 90’s and early 00’s and not one bottle was even approaching the grave. I mainly focus on the more tradition producers though so that may be the difference.

craig_v · February 21, 2015, 3:03pm

Where’s Eric Guido? He tasted several of the 2010s and loved them.

G_Keeler · February 21, 2015, 3:06pm

Also surprised to see so much Felsina Rancia love. I think they are well made wines at a fair price, but they skew a little modern for my tastes with the 04 and 06 recently showing pretty ripe flavors and a fair amount of wood. Both had plenty of like left and I’m sure the wood will integrate better but I’ve yet to have a Rancia compete with a top flight Brunello.

I think there is a lot still to learn about Brunello. As others have said, the history is short but some killer wines have been made (plenty of plunk too). While I prefer the wines from Piedmont, Brunello will always have a nice spot in my cellar and it’s something I always look forward to opening. Especially when I have a wild boar ragu on the stove.

michael_ottesen · February 21, 2015, 3:18pm

Salvioni are top juice,and i Think he is in the very top in Montalcino,only two better than him Soldera and Cerbaiona.In good vintages Salvioni are great value for 100 bucks.And their Rosso DI Montalcino even more.

Dan_Rosenheck · February 21, 2015, 3:19pm

I’m one of the few board members who list Tuscany as my favorite region. I think Brunello’s meh reputation among wine geeks is basically well-deserved, because so much of the oversized and insufficiently (in fact, not at all) subdivided appellation is puts out anonymous, internationally styled wine with little Sangiovese typicity, which they can pawn off on unsophisticated American drinkers for $40-$70 just because of the “B” word on the label. Banfi would be a $20-$25 high-end supermarket wine if it weren’t for that magic word Brunello. And I can’t blame these producers for going where the market leads them; they’re not making wine as a hobby or charity.

At the same time, I think there’s an unfortunate tendency to tar the entire appellation, region, and grape with the same brush. Personally, I don’t care at all whether a wine is labelled Brunello, Chianti, or IGT. The board favorites this side of the stratospherically priced Soldera and Biondi-Santi Riserva predictably tend to be the lighter-bodied, redder-fruited, less-oaked, less-extracted, more acidic producers (Il Poggione leaps to mind), but I actually prefer Brunellos with a bit more kick, stuffing, and complexity: the two best I’ve had are Cerbaiona (just the 1999) and Poggio di Sotto (2004 normale, 2001 normale, 2001 Decennale declassified Riserva, 2000 normale, 2008 Rosso), which can often pick up a Barolo-like tarry, bitter-herbs, or licorice character. Those are clearly legit $100 wines in my view. A 2004 Fuligni Riserva had a similar style. Outside the Brunello appellation, I love Flaccianello, which often has a funky note that adds to its base of bright red cherry and acidity, and am told Le Pergole Torte is world-class, though both bottles I’ve tried have disappointed. Percarlo seems to last forever–even the 1985 I tried needs more cellar time. And in Chianti, yes of course Rancia and particularly well-stored Monsanto il Poggio from 1990 and earlier stand up to Brunellos priced 3x as high. There are a ton of great wines at fair prices made in Tuscany. You just have to be selective.

Frank_Drew · February 21, 2015, 3:22pm

I agree with Glenn: If recent, well-regarded vintage Brunellos have one foot in the grave, then they deserve any criticism they get, but since even good Côtes du Rhône or Chianti Classico can easily go a decade and more without falling off the table, reports of 2004(?), 2006(?) Brunellos on the downslope are surprising and I wonder if people are just hitting wines at closed down stages.

craig_v · February 21, 2015, 3:25pm

I totally agree on Felsina and only buy the sweet spot stellar reserve for around $28. Never the Fontelloro or Rancia anymore.

Ian_Sutton · February 21, 2015, 3:25pm

Dan
Yes Flaccianello is a wine that I’ve enjoyed and would buy again.
regards
Ian

craig_v · February 21, 2015, 3:28pm

Well said, thanks…

Dan Rosenheck:

I’m one of the few board members who list Tuscany as my favorite region. I think Brunello’s meh reputation among wine geeks is basically well-deserved, because so much of the oversized and insufficiently (in fact, not at all) subdivided appellation is puts out anonymous, internationally styled wine with little Sangiovese typicity, which they can pawn off on unsophisticated American drinkers for $40-$70 just because of the “B” word on the label. Banfi would be a $20-$25 high-end supermarket wine if it weren’t for that magic word Brunello. And I can’t blame these producers for going where the market leads them; they’re not making wine as a hobby or charity.

At the same time, I think there’s an unfortunate tendency to tar the entire appellation, region, and grape with the same brush. Personally, I don’t care at all whether a wine is labelled Brunello, Chianti, or IGT. The board favorites this side of the stratospherically priced Soldera and Biondi-Santi Riserva predictably tend to be the lighter-bodied, redder-fruited, less-oaked, less-extracted, more acidic producers (Il Poggione leaps to mind), but I actually prefer Brunellos with a bit more kick, stuffing, and complexity: the two best I’ve had are Cerbaiona (just the 1999) and Poggio di Sotto (2004 normale, 2001 normale, 2001 Decennale declassified Riserva, 2000 normale, 2008 Rosso), which can often pick up a Barolo-like tarry, bitter-herbs, or licorice character. Those are clearly legit $100 wines in my view. A 2004 Fuligni Riserva had a similar style. Outside the Brunello appellation, I love Flaccianello, which often has a funky note that adds to its base of bright red cherry and acidity, and am told Le Pergole Torte is world-class, though both bottles I’ve tried have disappointed. Percarlo seems to last forever–even the 1985 I tried needs more cellar time. And in Chianti, yes of course Rancia and particularly well-stored Monsanto il Poggio from 1990 and earlier stand up to Brunellos priced 3x as high. There are a ton of great wines at fair prices made in Tuscany. You just have to be selective.

M_Chacchia · February 21, 2015, 4:07pm

RE: Il Poggione- I had the chance to taste the 2009 & 2010 side by side at that event. I found the '09 more feminine, more delicate. The '10 also showed that feminine side, but seemed to have more backbone, more fortitude. It was a bit more powerful yet still held on to it’s pretty side. Both were really beautiful wines and should be available sub $70 and sub $85 respectively.

craig_v · February 21, 2015, 4:11pm

Thanks, it would be fun to do the side by side. I paid $40 recently for the 2010.

G_Keeler · February 21, 2015, 4:18pm

We also have to be careful which style of Flaccianello we are talking about. They have consistently increased the new french oak treatment to the point where I think recent vintages are 100% new for 24 months. Very different style than the vintages from 10+ years ago that I used to really enjoy.

M_Chacchia · February 21, 2015, 4:24pm

Yes, in most cases I believe this to be true. They are just too young to be passing away so soon. Also, these were excellent vintages with some stuffing in the bottles, so most top Brunello should hold up easily.

M_Chacchia · February 21, 2015, 4:25pm

[quote=“craig v”]Thanks, it would be fun to do the side by side. I paid $40 recently for the 2010.
That is a must buy! Great find! I passed at $70.

Taylor_Broussard · February 21, 2015, 5:13pm

Was the Monsanto Il Poggio bottled in 2010? Nothing on Wine-Searcher and it doesn’t seem to be bottled every year either. You guys have been a great resource so far.

Dan_Rosenheck · February 21, 2015, 5:25pm

And as far as longevity is concerned, I don’t think I’ve had 10 Tuscan wines in my life under age 10. I do harbor doubts that these are 50-year wines like Barolos, with the exception of B-S Riserva which supposedly lasts forever (I haven’t tried the 1964 or 1975 sitting in my fridge). I also think that even the structured producers are more accessible young than, say…Latour. But I can say from extensive experience that for current drinking, the vintages now at peak (assuming you can find a rare well-stored bottle from a structured, non-spoofy producer) are 1985, 1988, and 1990. Perhaps 1995 as well; I haven’t had many from that year. I’ve tried lots of Tuscan reds from 1999 and 2001 (not to mention 2004) that were either impenetrable walls of structure (Percarlo in both vintages) or could clearly improve by trading fruit for complexity (Cerbaiona, Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragona Vigna di Pianrosso Riserva, Flaccianello, Poggio di Sotto, Pertimali/Livio Sassetti normale). That’s definitely not true of Suckling-engineered wines, such as the entire Casanova di Neri lineup or Bibi Graetz Testamatta in 2001. But I’d definitely say age 25-30 is the sweet spot for a structured and traditionally styled Sangiovese from a powerful, concentrated vintage. I can’t speak to any changes in winemaking over the past decade, because I haven’t tried any of the more recent vintages–and even if I had I don’t think I know/understand enough to predict credibly how their evolution over time might differ from that of their predecessors.

craig_v · February 21, 2015, 5:31pm

Got to believe it will be offered multiple times at sub $50. I wouldn’t pay $70 either but only because I’m so used to getting it a bargain sub $50 price in every vintage since I started buying it with 04.

DougS · February 21, 2015, 7:35pm

Dan Rosenheck:

At the same time, I think there’s an unfortunate tendency to tar the entire appellation, region, and grape with the same brush. Personally, I don’t care at all whether a wine is labelled Brunello, Chianti, or IGT. The board favorites this side of the stratospherically priced Soldera and Biondi-Santi Riserva predictably tend to be the lighter-bodied, redder-fruited, less-oaked, less-extracted, more acidic producers (Il Poggione leaps to mind), but I actually prefer Brunellos with a bit more kick, stuffing, and complexity: the two best I’ve had are Cerbaiona (just the 1999) and Poggio di Sotto (2004 normale, 2001 normale, 2001 Decennale declassified Riserva, 2000 normale, 2008 Rosso), which can often pick up a Barolo-like tarry, bitter-herbs, or licorice character. Those are clearly legit $100 wines in my view. A 2004 Fuligni Riserva had a similar style. Outside the Brunello appellation, I love Flaccianello, which often has a funky note that adds to its base of bright red cherry and acidity, and am told Le Pergole Torte is world-class, though both bottles I’ve tried have disappointed. Percarlo seems to last forever–even the 1985 I tried needs more cellar time. And in Chianti, yes of course Rancia and particularly well-stored Monsanto il Poggio from 1990 and earlier stand up to Brunellos priced 3x as high. There are a ton of great wines at fair prices made in Tuscany. You just have to be selective.

Well, you’ve named a couple that you like, and then quickly moved outside of Brunello to keep naming really nice examples of Sangiovese. I agree with you about Poggio di Sotto. I think those wines are tremendous and deserve to cost what they do. I’d be hard pressed to come up with more than a tiny number of producers for whom I think that is the case, though. I still think it’s fair to say that almost all Brunello is overpriced, and a huge percentage of it is not even all that good. The latter statement is particularly disappointing given the prices these wines command.

craig_v · February 21, 2015, 9:21pm

Doug, I can see how people would say they just don’t like sangeovese but, I don’t follow the overpriced comment unless you just hate the wine at any price? You can get the 2010 Talenti for $39. Is that overpriced? I can name more but they’re still on my "to buy
"list and I prefer not to. Brunello is like ANY other region. If you like CDP, there will be overpriced producers and styles you downright hate. But categorically, is CDP overpriced? I don’t think so if you it shop wisely. Same is true of Brunello. How many Napa Cabs are now easily over $100 vs. how many Brunellos sell for over $100?

Doug Schulman:

Dan Rosenheck:

At the same time, I think there’s an unfortunate tendency to tar the entire appellation, region, and grape with the same brush. Personally, I don’t care at all whether a wine is labelled Brunello, Chianti, or IGT. The board favorites this side of the stratospherically priced Soldera and Biondi-Santi Riserva predictably tend to be the lighter-bodied, redder-fruited, less-oaked, less-extracted, more acidic producers (Il Poggione leaps to mind), but I actually prefer Brunellos with a bit more kick, stuffing, and complexity: the two best I’ve had are Cerbaiona (just the 1999) and Poggio di Sotto (2004 normale, 2001 normale, 2001 Decennale declassified Riserva, 2000 normale, 2008 Rosso), which can often pick up a Barolo-like tarry, bitter-herbs, or licorice character. Those are clearly legit $100 wines in my view. A 2004 Fuligni Riserva had a similar style. Outside the Brunello appellation, I love Flaccianello, which often has a funky note that adds to its base of bright red cherry and acidity, and am told Le Pergole Torte is world-class, though both bottles I’ve tried have disappointed. Percarlo seems to last forever–even the 1985 I tried needs more cellar time. And in Chianti, yes of course Rancia and particularly well-stored Monsanto il Poggio from 1990 and earlier stand up to Brunellos priced 3x as high. There are a ton of great wines at fair prices made in Tuscany. You just have to be selective.

Well, you’ve named a couple that you like, and then quickly moved outside of Brunello to keep naming really nice examples of Sangiovese. I agree with you about Poggio di Sotto. I think those wines are tremendous and deserve to cost what they do. I’d be hard pressed to come up with more than a tiny number of producers for whom I think that is the case, though. I still think it’s fair to say that almost all Brunello is overpriced, and a huge percentage of it is not even all that good. The latter statement is particularly disappointing given the prices these wines command.