The Vigna Montosoli, which lends its name to a Montosoli Cru, represents our desire to valorize the uniqueness of a vineyard that is able to maintain its strong identity and quality of being recognizable even in different vintages. Over the years, it has been the vineyard that enhances the flavor and verticality of our Sangiovese.
DOC
Sangiovese 100%
From 255 to 215 masl
Vigna Montosoli Filari Lunghi
1997
At higher elevations, marl with very high mineral components, clay loam texture with higher levels of lime. The significant pebbly texture increases the ph of the soil. Wines of a great structure, marked minerality and sapidity sustained by an optimal acidity, ideal for long ageing.
Cordon trained and spur pruned (Spurrend cordon)
336° NNW
2.90 m X 0.80 m
In steel tanks with fermentation temperature control, daily soft pumping over. Maceration on the skins for 25 days
36 months in slavonian Oak casks
2018
3733 Bottles by750 ml
200 Bottles by 1500 ml
14.50%
From a climactic point of view, 2018 can be defined as a fresh year with above-average rainy trends compared to previous years, but which benefited from the effects of the wind in the month of September, which was a precious ally in guaranteeing proper balance in the weight of the grapes, bringing technological and phenolic balance. The winemaker’s choice to leave on the vines the quantity of grapes necessary for “big” maturation in the perspective of balance between structure and acidity was fundamental.
The winter was characterized by abundant precipitation (which re-balanced the water reserves in the soil that had been dried out by arid conditions in 2017) and cooler temperatures which ensured a subsequent vegetative regrowth with optimal healthy vines.
Spring saw cool temperatures and rainfall which delayed the bud break and flowering a few days.
Summer was characterized by high but never scorching temperatures that only rarely peaked above 30°C. Temperatures did reach 30°C practically every day from mid-June to the end of August and ensured a regular and continuous maturation in the vines. Apart from 2-3 days of the highest temperatures at 35°-36°C, the summer was consistently mild with significant diurnal temperature ranges that guaranteed a constant and uniform technological maturation.
In the first two weeks of September, there were big two rainfalls of 20mm on September 1 and 35mm on September 17. These rains could have compromised the quality of the vintage with an increase in the weight of the bunches and the natural dilution of the concentration and structure of the grapes. Fortunately, the Tramontana and Grecale winds from the north and northeast which accompanied the rainfall effectively dried out the excess water load from the bunches and brought the weight of the berries into balance, ensuring an optimal concentration and protecting the acidity at the same time.
In the 30 days preceding the harvest, there were significant diurnal temperature ranges which guaranteed the achievement of an elevated value on the Fregoni Index (above 500) which places the vintage among those with great ageing potential.
The harvest took place from September 28 to October 5 under sunny skies with significant diurnal temperature ranges and nighttime temperatures that were often below 10°C, which allowed us to bring healthy grapes into the cellar with an aromatic profile that was floral and fragrant with an optimal pureness of the fruit.
2018: A TRANSPARENT VINTAGE
We like to define the 2018 vintage as a TRANSPARENT vintage, wanting to capture the meaning of this term that refers to this vintage’s great capacity to let the uniqueness and the characteristics of the lands where the wines originated transpire in each bottle. In the concept of valorization, which is at the heart of our productive philosophy, several factors come into play: HUMAN EXPERIENCE, CLIMATE AND THE TERRAIN. We believe that the 2018 vintage clearly and distinctly brings out the third component, the TERRAIN, having been, in complete contrast to the latest vintages, a cooler and slightly rainier than average vintage in which the climate did not have a uniform standardizing effect but, on the contrary, let the features of the different soil types where the grapes originated “transpire” in the wine. Daring to make a comparison, the 2018 presents as a mix centered around the elegance and the tension between the fresh 2018 vintage and the classic 2013 vintage, creating a perfect balance between the two which translates into freshness, minerality, and tannin length without neglecting fullness and depth: a perfect mix to classify 2018 as a wine for long ageing and also of great pleasure that pairs extremely well.
In every vintage, there are two turning points, crucial moments which characterize the final result, its identity, and its main qualities: moments without which the results would have been very different. The turning point in the 2018 vintage came before the harvest when the Grecale and Tramontana winds from the north and northeast started blowing continuously and strongly, concentrating the grapes which, until that moment, had been slightly above average in weight after the rains in September. These conditions resulted in the drying and loss of a percentage of water that balanced the technological and phenolic maturation, ensuring optimal balance and maturation while preserving the acidity at the same time. Sunny days with significant diurnal temperature ranges during the harvest ensured an aromatic profile in the grapes that was floral and elegant, fresh and balsamic, that connects with a vibrant and full palate, long and sapid that plays on pleasantness and balance. The practice of reducing the bunches, removing those that were behind in maturation, in addition to a meticulous selection on the sorting table in the cellar guaranteed concentration and optimal phenolic maturation in the grapes that were brought into the cellar.
The harvest, precisely for of its quality of freshness, started a little later than the trend in previous years, during a period of cooler temperatures from September 28 to October 5.
The 2018 harvest was the first in the new Canalicchio di Sopra cellar, which was inaugurated specifically for the harvest.
The 2018 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli DOCG is our latest addition and the fulfillment of our winery’s zoning project which has seen 15 years of experimenting on a quest to understand the characteristics of our terroir and, therefore, our vineyards. There is a tendency to wait for a vintage with great fruit and opulence to launch a new wine on the market with the hopes of making an impact that astonishes after just the first taste. But our concept of the single vineyard is a concept which pursues those characteristics that make a vineyard unique and recognizable even in diverse vintages. From here comes the choice of selecting a vintage which we have defined as “transparent” as the first vintage of this new single vineyard wine, a vintage that makes it very possible to clearly and distinctly see the minerality, sapidity, tension, and depth of this terroir without the influence of a fruit that is too primary, which could have taken the attention away from the qualities that characterize the Montosoli zone. Produced from the Vigneto Filari Lunghi vineyard on the Montosoli hill which sits on marly terrain at a high altitude with a very high mineral component and high quantity of silt, this vineyard gives expression to wines that are bright, delicately salty, and vibrant, with great length and vibrant acidity that dances on the palate
Canalicchio di Sopra’s 2018 Vigna Montosoli, its debut single-vineyard bottling from this celebrated hill, is drop-dead gorgeous. Fragrant and all about elegance, it opens with enticing scents of wild rose, botanical herb, new leather and forest berry. Seamlessly fusing finesse and structure, the delicious palate delivers juicy Morello cherry, raspberry sprinkled with cinnamon, rosemary and thyme before a savory saline mineral finish. It boats great energy and impeccable balance, with taut, refined tannins and vibrant acidity. I just love it. Drink 2025–2038.
- Kerin O'Keefe
Lustrous ruby with narrow bricky rim. Very composed but with lots of hidden depths at this moment. Definitely minerally but not showing it all right now. With aeration increasingly complex and balsamic with a suggestion of stones and the prickle of mostarda. Gorgeous supple fruit with fine coating tannins. Elegant.
-Walter Speller
Enticing nose of bergamot, burdock root, dried and sour cherries, licorice and raw walnuts. Powerful, with a full body and firm, well-integrated and polished tannins supporting a compact core of spice and wild cherry fruit. Plenty of depth. Try after 2024.
- James Suckling
From one of the most renowned crus of Montalcino, grown on soils very rich in galestro, this reading of verticality and sapidity is born. Black mulberry to the nose with touches of clementina zest and marjoram. Great freshness and juiciness to the palate, with sapid tannins. Citrusy-fruity finish.
- Luca Gardini
Estremamente affascinante e nobile mostra classicismo e dinamicità nelle note rosse e nere che ricordano le rose, il melograno, il tiglio, il pompelmo, la buccia di limone, il mirto selvatico, l’incenso e la terra bagnata. Il bergamotto in sottofondo regala toni mediterranei che raccontano a pieno l’energia di Montosoli. Corpo medio-pieno, tannini perfettamente maturi, eleganti e di grana finissima si fondono alla perfezione nella matrice di stampo leggiadro e moderno snella e freschissima. Meglio dal 2024.
- Raffaele Vecchione
The 2018 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli is quite Burgundian in style, slowly awakening in the glass with a delicate mix of sweet herbs, crushed violet candies, hints of spiced orange and wild strawberries. It boasts a stunning purity of fruit and inner sweetness, seeming to hover across the palate, as red berries and saline-minerals slowly saturate under a purple-tinged air of inner florals. The 2018 leaves a grippy coating of fine tannins, yet balances them with a residual bump of zesty acidity, finishing long, lightly structured and with immaculate balance. This is the first official vintage of Vigna Montosoli, a wine that I’ve been following now for over two years, and each time it seems to only grow in both volume and depth.
- Eric Guido
More immediate and open than the Casaccia, more agricultural, with dark, fresh, ripe fruit, and succulent, full-bodied, substantial palate. Acids are vibrant, and sapidity is high. Great length. Not convinced this is significantly better than the normale... but time will tell. Still excellent of course.
-John Szabo
The first release of Canalicchio di Sopra’s Montosoli bottling comes from the estate’s Filari Lunghi vineyard, a pebbly, northwest-facing plot reaching 255 metres. This gives way slowly but steadily, exposing heady rose, wet stone and fragrant porcini. Decidedly mineral-driven, the palate performs with precision and depth. Tight tannins are fine-boned, and the appetising finish lingers with a salty stoniness that makes you salivate. It's impossible not to admire the elegance here.
-Michaela Morris
Here's an exciting new addition to the growing Canalicchio di Sopra portfolio. With fruit from one of the most celebrated subzones in the appellation, the 2018 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Montosoli shows a unique profile. The wine opens to a solid core of red and purple fruits, all framed by light spice, crushed stone or chalky limestone. The fiber of this wine is lean, tight and elegantly streamlined. It hits the palate with intensity and softness, and it delivers especially fine tannins. Francesco Ripaccioli made 3,733 bottles and 200 magnums.
-Monica Larner
Medium bodied and open knit, offering tomato leaf, plum, cherry, licorice, earth
and spice flavors Stays focused, courtesy of good cut, with a silky texture and
tannins that leave a slight sinewy feel on the finish. Overall, this is harmonious, complex and long. Best from 2025 through 2042.
- Bruce Sanderson
Medium ruby red in colour. A mixture of dark blue florals and spicy herbs invites the imbiber to this new and futuristic voyage of discovery, this being the first vintage of this new Cru. Bing cherry, dewberry, spiced orange peel. Caressing tannins interplay with citrus infused acidity. A charming and pretty wine, Full of youthful intensity and promise. Balanced like a ballerina. A abyss of textural depth. Winemaking at its zenith.
- Tony Wood -
Brunello di Montalcino Trophy 2023
- Wolfgang M. Rosam, Othmar Kiem, Simon Staffler -
