1993 Brunello di Montalcino Pianrosso

This ancient estate, whose familial history is enshrined in its name, originated during the Renaissance. The 15th-century palazzo was the seat of the patrician Piccolomini family, who redesigned and decorated the nearby town of Pienza, and who produced Pope Aeneas Silvio, a patron of Leonardo and Michaelangelo. The current owner, the Bianchini family, has lavished care on the vineyards, and has retained the irrepressible Roberto Cipresso as wine director. Their first vintage together, from vine to bottle, was 1990; from that point on, this property has been in the top tier. The vines and estate are in Castelnuovo dell' Abate, in the southwest area of the zone. Fine galestro soils (friable limestone with sand and clay) with iron give the wines distinctive flavors; they are typically more densely structured than those of their neighbors yet elegant. The vineyards are organically farmed as much as possible. Yields are kept to a low 35 hectoliters per hectare on average, though in 1997 the total yield was only 50% that of the 1996 vintage. While sensitive to the vagaries of each vintage, Cipresso has adapted very rigorous principles to extract as much as possible from his raw materials. The grapes are harvested as late as possible (October 2 in 1995, for instance). He employs a long maceration at high temperatures-in 1995, 32 days at a maximum of 34oC. The wines are aged in barriques puncheons and botti of up to 75 hectoliters. More recently, Cipresso is making a very fine Vino da Tavola called Ateo (atheist), a blend of Brunello, cabernet and merlot, aged in barriques Given Cipresso techniques, confidence and sense of style, these are among the darkest, densest, and classiest wines being made in Montalcino.