Cosimi. Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 'Il Poggiolo'

Brunello di Montalcino DOCG
Grape: Sangiovese

2013
Deep strawberry and dark cherry, touched with rose and violet, mingling with porcini, cinnamon, and black pepper.  A serious and complex wine, lovely now and it will develop over many years.
A vintage that was heavily influence by a dry, if not exceptionally hot summer, that was preceded by a wet spring. This capped the production early. It is an excellent vintage, with healthy grapes coming in, not too high in sugar, balanced by good acidity.  14%

2012
Amazingly youthful nose, cardamon, rose and red berry.  A controlled, elegant wine; fine mocha tannins, truffle, red berry and sloe.  Refined and excellent.  13.8%

Rodolfo Cosimi Il Poggiolo producer page

The ‘Black Label’ Riserva is a rare and magnificent sighting. At Il Poggiolo the Annata Brunello comes first, a Riserva will only be made when a barrel or two of the best wine can be hived off with no detrimental effect.
Regulations stipulate that a Riserva must be aged for another twelve months before release, the minimum period of two years in oak is the same for both Brunello and Brunello Riserva. In reality the wine benefits from a little extra time in oak thanks to the quality of the raw materials. Rudi’s Riserva spends 36 months in French oak (mainly tonneaux (500ltr) and some barrique (225ltr)).

The grapes are picked by hand and transported the short distance to the winery in shallow trays. Fermentation is in large, open oak casks with a regular punching down of the cap. The fermentation lasts around two weeks before being transferred for ageing and malolactic transformation.
This Brunello is fined with egg whites and bottled without filtration.