2016 Col D’Orcia, Rosso di Montalcino DOC, Tuscany, Italy.
The 2016 Col D’Orcia Rosso di Montalcino is a smashing full bodied and complex wine, proving that this vintage is one to collect and stock up on, this “Baby Brunello” certainly lives up to its name, in fact it is not far off the more expressive true Brunello, I would be hard pressed to know the difference in a blind tasting, such is the quality here. I was immediately impressed by the depth and density of the fruit with a gorgeous array of earthy dark berries along with classic Sangiovese purity and accents, including blackberry, mulberry, currant and kirsch, as well as anise, dried flowers, minty herbs, cedar, mocha and a savory cut of cigar wrapper. The mouth is fairly supple and there is a sense of ripe tannin, but this wine is pretty serious in structure and the natural acidity is well integrated and adds a polished freshness to this fine example of Rosso di Montalcino. There is so much to enjoy in this Col D’Orcia and like the La Torre Rosso di Montalcino, you get much more than expected and this deeply hued wine is remarkable for the price.
Col d’Orcia, which translates to “the hill overlooking the Orcia River”, is one of the original Brunello properties and the largest organic estate in the region, well known for traditional or authentic wines. The Orcia River marks the Southwestren border of the Brunello di Montalcino zone, where there is some volcanic influence in the clay and limestone soils and with warm exposures that adds to the concentration and richness of the Sangiovese Grosso (Brunello Clone) grapes. It is through Col D”Orcia’s efforts that in 1983 that Rosso di Montalcino became a DOC and their’s is an iconic example, which the winery notes, is made with pure (100%) Sangiovese grapes, released one year after the harvest to retain all the freshness and fruitiness of a young wine, but this is year that gave an added dimension to this Rosso and this is fabulous, especially good with hearty cuisine. This bodes well for the upcoming 2016 Brunello that should be legendary, but for exceptional value I recommend grabbing a bunch of these and enjoy them for the next 3 to 5 years!
($22 Est.) 93 Points, grapelive