2011 Brunello di Montalcino: Terroir Matters

The 2011 Brunellos have a hard task, as they are nestled between the superb 2010s and the highly promising 2012s. Readers need to be selective, as 2011 is a vintage with a great deal of variability and widely diverging highs and lows. The best 2011 Brunellos are racy, open-knit and seductive, all qualities that make them well-suited for near to medium-term drinking.

The 2011 Growing Season

An unusually warm, dry winter led to budbreak that was several weeks ahead of schedule and set the stage for a year where the calendar of the vine was moved up dramatically. Flowering was also ahead of schedule. The inversion of seasons continued during the early part of summer, which was unseasonably cool and overcast. Some producers opened up canopies in order to promote better air circulation and stave off disease pressure. Other growers, worried about the ability of vines to ripen a full crop, started deleafing and dropping fruit.

Those decisions would turn out to have major ramifications when a blast of dry heat arrived from Africa in mid-August. The blistering heat cooked exposed fruit and caused considerable dehydration on the vine. According to most growers, the heat spike only lasted a few days, but temperatures remained high during that period, even at night, giving the plants no respite. Vines, like people, don’t like shocks. The August heat spike would turn out to leave a distinctive signature of ripe, roasted fruit in many wines. Sugars continued to rise, but physiological ripeness, stunted by the heat, lagged behind. Growers had to choose between picking early to preserve whatever freshness could still be had, but risk hard, unripe tannins, or wait until physiological ripeness had been achieved, but take their chances with elevated sugars and alcohols. These are never easy choices to make.

Oliver, an esteemed member of the Salvioni vineyard crew, seen during pruning

Canalicchi, Montosoli and Pelagrilli…Where Are You?

Because of the stressed conditions of the year, the 2011 Brunellos are highly uneven across the board. I place 2011 behind 2010, but ahead of 2009, a year with which 2011 shares some similarities, the biggest being the generally forward, advanced qualities that are found in many wines. With a few exceptions, the 2011s are wines that will drink well with minimal cellaring and that are likely to age at a faster pace than normal.

I tasted more than a few 2011 Brunellos with advanced, bricked/orangeish tonalities of color and the accompanying developed flavors that are much more typical of older wines. The vintage is much stronger on the northern side of Montalcino, where temperatures are generally cooler than in the south, and where a number of key vineyards sit at higher altitudes.