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Top 5 Brunello (Sangiovese) at the LCBO
If I Could Buy Only One – March 29th Vintages Release
We asked our writers, “If you could buy only one wine from the March 29th release, which one would it be and why?” Muga Selección Especial 2019, Rioja, Spain$55.95, VinexxMichael Godel – Muga’s Selección Especial 2019, DOCa Rioja is a blend of tempranillo, garnacha tinta, graciano and mazuelo grown in the clay-limestone (tertiary era) terraces located […] More
Buyer’s Guide to Vintages March 29th Release
John Szabo’s Vintages Review March 29: Elbows Up with Canadian Wine in Hand; Launch of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano’s Pievi; What do Consumers Think of Ontario Wine?By John Szabo MS, with notes from Sara d’Amato, Megha Jandhyala, David Lawrason, and Michael Godel Elbows Up: The Canadian World Are we still trapped in the Old World […] More
By John Szabo MS The big news this year at the annual ‘anteprima’, or preview tastings of the latest Vino Nobile di Montepulciano wines to arrive on the market, was the official launch of the long awaited Pieve designation. These are essentially Riserva-level wines from one of 12 pievi (singular: pieve) or parishes within the […] More
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Brunello di Montalcino is one of the most prestigious appellations in Italy, born in the 19th Century in its present form thanks to the efforts of the Biondi-Santi family, who defined its rules and have largely guided it to the present day. The wines are made from 100% Sangiovese grape, in particular from a clone called Sangiovese Grosso, or also as Brunello - hence the appellation's name. Traditionally, the wine goes through an extended maceration period where color, tannins and flavour are extracted from the skins. Following fermentation the wine is then aged in oak. Traditionally, the wines are aged 3 years or more in "botti" - large Slovenian oak casks that impart little oak flavour and generally produce more austere wines. Some winemakers will use small French barrels which impart a more pronounced vanilla oak flavour and add a certain fruitiness to the wine. Whatever the approach, wines must be aged for for years (with a minimum of two years in barrel) before being released, according to appellation rules.
