Brunello di Montalcino is meant to be the definitive expression of sangiovese, but sangiovese continues to elude definition: It mutates readily, ripens unevenly and has an austerity that challenges winemakers to present it unadorned. Some producers seem to have it figured out, but after all these years, Brunello's identity is still taking shape.
In recent developments, Vinowire.com has been following an investigation by the prosecutor's office in Siena, in which a number of leading Brunello producers may be indicted for blending varieties other than sangiovese into their wines. Here is an excerpt from David Lynch's feature story on Brunello, published in the April 2008 issue of Wine & Spirits.
"Montalcino needs to develop its own identity independent from that of Tuscany in general," Marone Cinzano said as he stood at the south wall of Sant'Angelo in Colle, one of the villages that orbit the town of Montalcino. Most of Col d'Orcia's vineyards fan out beneath Sant'Angelo and ramble toward the Orcia River, which marks the southern boundary of the Montalcino DOCG. As the late–afternoon sun glinted in the river and brightened the bare wintertime vineyards, it occurred to me that the vineyards I had visited earlier that same day—those of Fuligni, which have a northeastern exposure—were likely in shadows. At an elevation of 1,475 feet, Sant' Angelo offered a panorama of the southern flank of the Montalcino appellation, the point at which central Tuscany gives way to Mediterranean Tuscany. These south-slope vineyards have traditionally been thought to produce lusher, rounder, darker Brunellos. By contrast, wines from the cooler north– and east–facing slopes are said to be higher—toned and more angular.
Marone Cinzano agreed that these distinctions are not always clear and that it's not always a matter of winemaking style. "Producers have been having this discussion of terroir forever," said Marone Cinzano. "But it hasn't translated to consumers because many producers have holdings in different parts of Montalcino and use material from these diverse vineyards in their wines."
While this is true, there is another factor clouding the picture in Montalcino—the very real possibility that producers are altering Brunello's pure–sangiovese formula. Last year, at the direction of Italy's Ministry of Agriculture, the provinces of Florence and Siena were charged with verifying the vineyard registries of their respective wine appellations. Surveyors discovered many vineyards, including some in Montalcino, that were listed under DOCG regulations as containing only sangiovese but actually contained other varieties. There are also rumors of wine being trucked in from elsewhere, although so far in Montalcino [as of February 15, 2008] nothing has made the papers (unlike the truckload of 800,000 liters of Puglian sangiovese that was recently intercepted at a large Chianti Classico winery). When I asked about this at the Consorzio, the reply was that "all the wines Rosso and Brunello are made from sangiovese in Montalcino," and at this writing, there was no documented proof of anything to the contrary—just widespread suspicion.
As Marone Cinzano noted, somewhat diplomatically, Montalcino is a "young" appellation, one that has experienced some growing pains since the Consorzio was formed in 1967. Back then there were about 65 hectares of vineyards and 12 bottlers of Brunello di Montalcino. Today there are more than 1,300 hectares and 208 bottlers. Land values in the area have multiplied 23 times over those 40 years, so much so that today, at about 400,000 euros per hectare, Montalcino is blue–chip real estate on par with Napa Valley. The next step is to attach more value to Montalcino as a terroir.
"I think we're just at the point now where we know enough about sangiovese to take the next step forward in the evolution of the appellation," Marone Cinzano said. Having to walk the political tightrope as the Consorzio president, he was cryptic in addressing the issue of adulterated wines, choosing the neither–confirm–nor–deny route. "There is a healthy group, on which I am relying, who wants the real sangiovese," he said, and left it at that.
[Others made similar comments. Giulio Gambelli has had a 60-year career as a consultant to such landmark wineries as Biondi-Santi and Gianfranco Soldera.] Gambelli didn't care to address whether producers are, despite their DOCG mandate of varietal purity, giving the angular, light–colored sangiovese a boost—with cabernet, syrah or some other sweetening, fattening, blackening component. He simply pointed to a bottle of Soldera Brunello he had on a table nearby and said, in the manner of Yoda schooling a young Jedi knight, "That is sangiovese."
He wasn't being boastful, just expedient. Anyone who's tried a Soldera wine knows that it is all sharp angles, more sinew than fat, more treble than bass. Montalcino has traditionally been viewed as the terroir that generates bigger, darker, denser sangiovese, but Gambelli's perspective was that Brunello can be powerful without being big.
[Roberto Guerrini, the proprietor of Fuligni, echoes that statement at the end of Lynch's story.] "Sangiovese is not sweet and it's not black. The difficulty with this grape is that it's either great or it's nothing. In other parts of Tuscany, producers have always blended other varieties to add color or body. But blending is difficult. It may be five percent of merlot added to a base of sangiovese, but the effect is like 40 percent."
It's a question of scale that doesn't appear to have resolved itself yet. Guerrini seconded the Gambelli view that the dimensions of Brunello need not be massive. This is a concept most producers and consumers still need to come to terms with. "Brunello should not shout," he said, in a measured tone befitting his day job as a college professor. "It should whisper."
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According to Francesco Marone Cinzano, the owner of Col d'Orcia and the new president of the Montalcino producers' association, the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino, the next step for the Montalcino appellation is a clearer expression of its varied terrain, possibly through the development of more vineyard-designated wines. At this point, Montalcino the terroir still takes a back seat to Montalcino the luxury brand.
