Description
Montevertine, Rosso di Toscana
Crafted primarily from Sangiovese grown at high elevations in the heart of Chianti Classico, Montevertine’s Rosso di Toscana is not only the most authentic expression of grape and place one could ask for but one of the greatest values you’ll ever encounter for an elite, cellar-worthy wine. It’s a straightforward proposition: You don’t come across a region-defining wine that’ll age 20+ years at this price very often. Its unparalleled value is likely why it is now a tightly allocated item, meaning we only have a small amount to share with the SommSelect faithful.
There are just three reds produced at Montevertine, all of them riffs on Sangiovese from different vineyards on the 18-hectare property. Although “Le Pergole Torte” (first released in 1977) is considered the top of the line, this wine, called simply “Montevertine,” is the flagship of the estate: 90% Sangiovese with supporting percentages of the local Canaiolo and Colorino, sourced primarily from a southeast-facing, 2.5-hectare plot of vines planted in 1982. In terms of vinification and aging, everything at Montevertine is hyper-traditional: All ferments are done in old concrete vats that date to the estate’s founding, after which the wine ages two years in large Slavonian oak casks before bottling.
Montevertine’s Rosso is always a taut, chiseled, Burgundy-inspired red in its youth. In the glass, it’s a bright ruby moving to garnet and a hint of orange at the rim, with perfumed aromas of black cherry, raspberry, plum, tobacco leaf, crushed rocks, leather, rose petals, and wild herbs. It’s a bright, lifted wine that epitomizes “tension” in wine—it resembles the woodsier, more mineral styles of red Burgundy, like Pommard or Gevrey-Chambertin, albeit with even more underbrush-y savor. Decant it for at least an hour before consuming if opening a bottle now; otherwise, cellar it for a few years to give it time to really blossom. Enjoy it in Burgundy stems at 60-65 degrees with quail or duck and be assured that it has a 20-year window, minimum. You want a benchmark for great Sangiovese? This is it!
