Brunello Di Montalcino 2007: A Worthy Successor to 2006

by Antonio Galloni

I have been visiting Montalcino since 1997. During the years I lived in Italy (2000-2003), I traveled to this picturesque hillside town several times a year. Today I meet with countless winemakers and visit numerous estates on a regular basis. And I have had the privilege to taste virtually all of the reference point wines made in Montalcino, both new and old. But none of that really matters. It was two totally unrelated incidents during my recent trip that spoke most eloquently to what Montalcino is really all about.

I arrived in Montalcino on Monday, February 13. The previous Friday, Montalcino had been hit with the second of two big snowstorms within a few days. It was the biggest snowfall since 1985. Many spots had a total of 50-75cm (20-30 inches) on the ground, which happens to be the range at which a number of vineyards are pruned, so the vines were basically completely covered with snow. By the time I got to Montalcino, the main roads in and out of town were pretty much clear, but the town center itself was a disaster. Steep, slippery roads weren’t cleared until the following Tuesday, but plowed snow clogged roads and basically ate up the few parking spots that exist until the snow finally started melting. Let’s get one thing clear. Montalcino exists for one thing and one thing only. Wine. Without wine there is nothing that distinguishes Montalcino from countless other pretty hillside Tuscan villages. So, one might reasonably think that under the burden Montalcino was clearly feeling from an abnormal weather event for which it was totally unprepared, its leading corporate citizens might chip in to help. A few of the big producers could have sent in their tractors and had roads in tip-top shape, or close to it, in a matter of hours. Fat chance. If this snowstorm had happened just two weeks later, the annual Benvenuto Brunello event would have been severely compromised.