Brunello di Montalcino (2018)

About this wine

Sanlorenzo’s 2018 Brunello di Montalcino is all about that high toned Sangiovese energy, with red cherry and sour cherry leading the way. Floral notes like violet ride alongside dried Mediterranean herbs and a gentle tobacco nuance that feels very true to Montalcino. The palate brings plum skin and cherry stone, then shifts into forest floor and tea leaf depth. Tannins feel young and firm, giving the wine a structured, sculpted finish rather than a plush one. The vineyards sit high for the zone at about 1,600 feet, which helps keep the fruit vivid and the overall profile lifted. The estate name nods to Saint Lawrence, and in Tuscany that association shows up everywhere from old parish churches to harvest time traditions, which suits a wine that leans so strongly into place.

About the grape

Brunello di Montalcino is made from 100 percent Sangiovese, historically the central grape of Tuscany and in Montalcino most often planted as the local Sangiovese Grosso clone commonly called Brunello. At Sanlorenzo the vines sit around 500 metres on south west facing slopes in Santa Fiora marly soils, where the thick skinned Sangiovese benefits from good diurnal range and low to moderate yields to concentrate phenolic ripeness. The estate farms organically and vinifies Sangiovese in stainless steel with long macerations and then ages the wine in large wooden casks, choices that emphasize the variety s structure and allow the single grape to express site specific traits.

Quick facts

• 👨‍🌾 Sanlorenzo is still family-run on land bought in the late 1800s, and the estate name honors the original family ancestor Lorenzo.
• ⛰️ Their Brunello vines sit high on Montalcino at about 500 metres facing southwest, giving big day–night temperature swings that sharpen Sangiovese character.
• 🪨 The soils on the estate come from the Santa Fiora formation, ancient marine deposits around 40 million years old, which give a stony, mineral backbone to the wine.
• 🌱 Sanlorenzo converted to organic viticulture around 2012, so the 2018 Brunello reflects a decade-plus of organic farming practices in the vineyards.
• 🍾 Despite being a classic Brunello, their 2018 is often made in relatively small batches from just a few hectares of 10–40 year-old Sangiovese vines, making each bottle feel distinctly site-specific.

Palate profile

Producer

Podere Sanlorenzo is a family run estate in the Montalcino area of Tuscany that traces its vineyard roots to the late 19th century when Lorenzo Ferretti bought the land. The modern winery emerged under the Ciolfi family, with Luciano Ciolfi taking stewardship and beginning to bottle Brunello from the early 2000s, while expanding and modernizing the vineyards. The estate cultivates mainly Sangiovese on poor, stony soils around 450 to 500 metres elevation, and ages its Brunello in large oak casks to emphasize structure and longevity. Production is small and focused, with the estate also producing Rosso and a Bramante Riserva that highlight careful selection and traditional practices.