Should you’ve ever splurged on a bottle of Brunello di Montalcino, you already know the magic of Tuscany’s most celebrated purple wine. However one other wine from the identical picturesque hillside city deserves your consideration. One that will not require a second mortgage.

Enter Rosso di Montalcino, Brunello’s youthful, more energizing sibling, which is shortly changing into the discuss of the wine world. Constituted of the identical Sangiovese grapes as Brunello, Rosso affords a livelier, extra approachable fashion that’s excellent for on a regular basis consuming.

“Montalcino is definitely distinctive in Italy as a result of we produce extra of our prestigious wine, Brunello, than we do of Rosso di Montalcino,” says Riccardo Fratton, winemaker at Poggio San Polo. “For years, Rosso was seen as second-best, created from grapes that weren’t adequate for Brunello. However that mindset is altering utterly.”

A recent tackle custom

Winemakers have began to deal with Rosso with the identical care that they provide to Brunello. Moderately than use leftover grapes or rush the winemaking course of, they craft wines that showcase the freshness and vitality that made folks fall in love with Italian wine.

“Rosso has graduated from the youngsters’ desk,” says Chicago sommelier Covin Davis, of RPM Italian restaurant. “The typicity of a Rosso continues to be but to be decided. From producer to producer, types vary from gentle, simple consuming, paying homage to younger Chianti, to extra severe ‘second wines’ like the good châteaus of Bordeaux.”

This represents a big shift in how producers view Rosso di Montalcino. 

“We have to break free from the previous thought of Montalcino wines with their searing acidity and agency tannins,” says Fratton. “Whereas custom and terroir stay essential, we’re now focusing extra on steadiness and magnificence. Brunello can present the extra structured, age-worthy aspect of Sangiovese, whereas Rosso shows its freshness and drinkability.”

Single-vineyard standouts

Maybe essentially the most telling growth in Rosso di Montalcino’s pedigree is the emergence of single-vineyard choices. These wines showcase the distinctive traits of particular websites inside Montalcino, which signifies that Rosso will be simply as terroir-driven as its massive brother Brunello.

Val di Suga produces a Rosso from its prized Vigna Spuntali winery on Montalcino’s southwestern slope. The Mediterranean-influenced web site with sandier soils creates a recent, complicated wine that captures the essence of its location. An revolutionary getting older strategy, six months in Slavonian oak barrels adopted by 12 months in concrete vats, preserves the wine’s vibrant fruit character, but provides depth and construction.

Il Marroneto’s “Ignaccio” Rosso is created from a one-hectare plot of sandy, mineral-rich soil and affords vibrant acidity. Pioneering producer Poggio di Sotto ages its Rosso for not less than two years in wooden that’s chosen with the identical care it makes use of for Brunello. Such consideration to element exhibits simply how far Rosso has come.

Local weather change and high quality

An surprising issue has propelled Rosso’s high quality even additional. 

“Local weather change is an actual menace,” says Davis. “Producers are trying to find vineyards at greater elevations and cooler websites. Among the area’s greatest producers are ripping up their property vineyards to allow them to plant new vines at greater elevations, which can ultimately be destined for Brunello. Within the interim, these vines shall be used for Rosso, and the wines shall be crafted to the utmost high quality.”

Montalcino’s wine authorities have made important adjustments to manufacturing guidelines. In June 2024, producers gained extra flexibility in how they use their vineyards, a transfer away from strict plot-by-plot designation for both Rosso or Brunello. This permits winemakers to adapt to classic circumstances and local weather challenges. They will select which grapes go into which wines primarily based on the yr’s distinctive traits. The area additionally permitted an enlargement that can add about 1.5 million bottles to Rosso’s annual manufacturing, which brings the full to five.5 million bottles, a transparent response to rising world demand.

“Sangiovese is extremely versatile,” says Fratton. “It could possibly specific each energy and construction, in addition to lightness and drinkability. Montalcino’s distinctive terroir lets us present either side of this grape’s persona.”

Worth within the glass

Rosso di Montalcino affords an ideal entry level into one in every of Italy’s most well-known wine areas with out the steep price ticket of Brunello.

The worth variations will be dramatic. Whereas high Brunellos like Biondi-Santi ($228) and Poggio di Sotto ($200) command severe funding, their Rossos supply the same pedigree at round $87 and $100, respectively. Much more accessible choices like Baricci ($40), Le Ragnaie ($45), and San Polo ($30) ship distinctive high quality at costs excellent for on a regular basis enjoyment. Their Brunello counterparts usually run $60-90.

“With the rising prices of the Brunello class, wines labeled below Rosso di Montalcino have a seat on the desk for an approachable choice, and a solution to not sacrifice high quality whereas remaining price range acutely aware,” says Alisha Blackwell-Calvert, sommelier at Madrina in St. Louis. “In the case of extremely sought-after premium producers like Biondi-Santi, Valdicava, or Case Basse, the Rosso providing provides the patron a extra cheap introduction to the acclaimed vineyard’s fashion.”

Davis agrees with this worth proposition. “That you must be affected person with Brunello, and in our world of immediate gratification, generally a younger Brunello will depart you feeling removed from gratifying,” he says. “However, you’ll be able to take pleasure in a Rosso at a fraction of the price, which supplies you a peek right into a producer’s fashion with out handing over a mortgage cost.”

A contemporary fashion for a brand new era

These wines present usually what Blackwell-Calvert calls “hallmark Sangiovese traits of Morello cherry, cranberry, and tomato leaf, with medium-bodied construction and ageability.” 

However what makes Rosso notably thrilling is its rapid enchantment.

“Rosso showcases a recent illustration of Sangiovese earlier than the prolonged oak getting older Brunello requires,” says Blackwell-Calvert. “The brightness of Rosso tends to resonate with youthful palates.”

Such accessibility does not compromise high quality. “My latest tour to Montalcino was very enlightening for a lot of causes, however the high quality of the Rosso di Montalcino we tasted was very eye-opening,” says Blackwell-Calvert. “Rosso is now not an oversight, however being taken extra critically as a contender for market and wine listing share with the general consideration to better high quality and presentation.”

The subsequent time you browse the Italian wine part, take into account a bottle of Rosso di Montalcino. You may uncover your new favourite Italian purple and find the money for left to order pizza to go along with it.

Rosso di Montalcino bottles to attempt

The next choices supply their very own interpretation of what makes Rosso di Montalcino particular, whether or not by single-vineyard bottlings or conventional blends.

Baricci 2021 Rosso di Montalcino, $40

A benchmark producer from Montosoli, Baricci crafts a Rosso di Montalcino that’s recent and vibrant, showcasing vivid purple cherry, wild herbs, and a mineral-driven end. Recognized for his or her elegant and structured Brunellos, their Rosso captures the identical precision and vitality in a younger, accessible expression.

Canalicchio di Sopra 2021 Rosso di Montalcino, $42

One in all Montalcino’s historic estates, Canalicchio di Sopra delivers a Rosso that balances freshness with depth. Notes of ripe purple berries, floral hints, and refined spice result in a silky but vigorous palate, reflecting the property’s refined winemaking strategy.

Il Marroneto 2021 Rosso di Montalcino “Ignaccio”, $46

From the famend Il Marroneto property, well-known for its historically styled Brunellos, “Ignaccio” is a Rosso that brims with purity and magnificence. Vibrant raspberry, pomegranate, and rose petals shine alongside a fine-boned construction, providing a glimpse into the finesse of the property’s age-worthy wines.

Poggio San Polo 2021 Rosso di Montalcino, $34

A contemporary, sustainably centered property, Poggio San Polo produces a Rosso that’s juicy and fruit-forward, that includes lush cherry, plum, and smooth tannins. This can be a vivid and easygoing tackle Sangiovese, emphasizing drinkability and allure.

Val di Suga Vigna Spuntali 2021 Rosso di Montalcino, $75

An outlier within the class, this single-vineyard Rosso from Val di Suga’s Vigna Spuntali, usually reserved for Brunello, delivers outstanding depth and focus. Darkish berry fruit, balsamic tones, and velvety tannins set it aside as a Rosso with severe pedigree.

Le Ragnaie 2021 Rosso di Montalcino, $40

Le Ragnaie’s high-altitude vineyards lend an ethereal high quality to this Rosso, marked by lifted aromatics of purple currant, orange zest, and delicate spice. With a light-weight contact and vivid acidity, it epitomizes the refreshing, food-friendly aspect of Montalcino’s youthful wines.