Vino Nobile & Carmignano: Italy’s Forgotten Noble Reds
BY ANTONIO GALLONI |
Italy is one of the world’s most fascinating and diverse countries. There are of course famous wines like Brunello di Montalcino, Barolo and Chianti Classico. But the country is also home to many other wines that have enjoyed periods of prominence mixed with less brilliant eras of near obscurity. Vino Nobile and Carmignano are two wines with long, rich histories, deep connections to the land and much for the curious wine-lover to explore.
Montepulciano’s Vino Nobile
Vino Nobile is the top wine made in Montepulciano, a picturesque hillside town located near Montalcino, Pienza and the southern border of Chianti Classico. Vino Nobile, nowadays often simply called ‘Nobile’, generally has more structure and depth than Chianti Classico, but less opulence than Brunello. That’s a pretty appealing mix in my book. In recent years producers have backed off the extracted, oaky, internationalized styles meant to make Nobile resemble wines from other commercially popular regions – the approach of the last three decades or so – and instead focused showing the natural translucence and expressivity of Sangiovese, known here as Prugnolo Gentile.
The results are evident. I have never been more turned on by the wines of Montepulciano as I was during my tastings for this report. If I had to bet on one region in Italy that really has the potential to explode onto the global stage the way Brunello, Barolo, Barbaresco and Chianti Classico have, it would no doubt be Montepulciano. There is so much potential here. For now, the wines of Montepulciano offer exceptional value, especially within the context of reds of place from historical Old World appellations.
Gently undulating vineyards in Montepulciano.
A Bit of History…
Italy is one of the world’s most fascinating and diverse countries. There are of course famous wines like Brunello di Montalcino, Barolo and Chianti Classico. But the country is also home to many other wines that have enjoyed periods of prominence mixed with less brilliant eras of near obscurity. Vino Nobile and Carmignano are two wines with long, rich histories, deep connections to the land and much for the curious wine-lover to explore.
