Jekyll and Hyde: 2017 Brunello di Montalcino and 2016 Riservas

BY ERIC GUIDO | DECEMBER 09, 2021

There’s good news, bad news and some not-so-bad news out of Montalcino. Here we are with the release of the 2017 Brunellos only a month away, as collectors, speculators and lovers of Italy’s biggest name in pure Sangiovese prepare to either open their wallets or hold onto them tight. At this point, we’ve all heard the rumors that the 2017 vintage was challenging in Montalcino. There’s been talk of collectors' plans to entirely skip the vintage, and retailers reserving their budgets for the next best thing. Why not, right? Especially after stories about grapes shriveling and drying on the vines in the south, as well as frost further reducing yields in the north. Or about producers declassifying their entire production to Rosso, while others declassified their crus and Riserva juice to straight Brunello. Anyone that follows Montalcino has likely tasted the 2017 Rossos by now, with their savage yet opulent fruit profiles and unexpected tannic grip. While these wines are wildly enjoyable, it begs the question of how the region could produce classic Brunellos through more rigorous selection and further oak aging. It’s an interesting question, but way too broad. 

Looking south across Sant'Angelo from the Argiano winery.

I think the first thing we all need to get past here is the word “Classic”. While every winemaking region around the world may have a certain style associated with what readers should expect from it year to year, it seems to be mainly in Italy, or, more precisely, Piedmont and Tuscany, where the mark of vintage can make or break the entire region. That’s not to say that a poor vintage in Bordeaux or Burgundy won’t affect the majority of producers, but that in those regions, consumers are much more loyal to the growers they love, and trusting that the best, most insightful and open-minded producers will still make great wines. The reality is that the 2017 vintage in Montalcino was torridly hot and dry through the entire summer, which interrupted the growth cycle, pushed sugar levels, thickened skins and prevented proper phenolic ripeness. In order to create a good, to possibly great, wine, producers needed to dig deeply into their bag of tricks. They needed to be in the vineyards working the soils, tending to leaf management and anticipating proper harvest times. They needed to be open to changing the techniques they use in their cellars, including, but not limited to, shorter macerations, lower temperatures in fermentations or drastically reducing the time that the wines spent in wood. Then of course there is the location, as the north slope varies from the south slope, and how Castelnuovo dell’Abate is quite different from Sant'Angelo in Colle. The actual variables are innumerable; and so, while one can say that 2017 was a tough vintage, skipping it entirely because the wines are not “Classic” Brunello would be a mistake. 

Now don’t get me wrong, there are many wines from this vintage that simply shouldn’t have been raised into becoming Brunello di Montalcino. Unfortunately, it’s these wines, many of which would have been much better as Rosso di Montalcino, that hurt the region and the perception of the vintage. Whether this is the result of greedy producers that simply hoped they would still sell their wines on the “Brunello Brand” or their name alone, versus those that did all that they could and simply were unable to find balance in the finished wine, and a third category that simply can’t afford to skip a vintage, the unfortunate reality is by releasing wines that are sub-standard and priced in the $50 plus range, smears the name of Brunello di Montalcino.

Seeing Montalcino from North to South and Why It Matters

If only Montalcino as a whole was looking to define its terroir for consumers to better understand. In a vintage like 2017, location was extremely important. Not as much as the insightfulness of the grower and winemaker, yet still paramount to the success and style of the wines. The old logic is that most producers blend from vineyards throughout the region for balance, and while that’s still true for many top estates, the current trends of cru or vigne-designated wines, as well as the rise of smaller producers sourcing completely from vines around their estates has made the discussion of location very important. 

A study of Montalcino terroir at Pian dell'Orino.