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Altesino Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva 2016 750ml

size
750ml
country
Italy
region
Tuscany
WA
96
WE
95
WS
95
JS
95
DC
94
VM
94
Additional vintages
WA
96
Rated 96 by Wine Advocate
The Altesino 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva holds tight to its unique character and power. The classic 2016 vintage produced generous wines that are layered and rich but also coiled tightly at their core. This wine exemplifies this point, adding lots of tart Sangiovese fruit and freshness along the way. It also shows an impressive richness of flavors with dried cherry, licorice, pressed violets, balsam herb and dusty limestone. The caveat with this wine, should you decide to drink it early, is that it needs extra time to open (and a double decanting would also help). This 10,000-bottle production opens beautifully in time. ... More details
Image of bottle
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Altesino Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva 2016 750ml

SKU 891805
Case Only Purchase
Long-term Pre-Arrival
$503.70
/case
$83.95
/750ml bottle
Quantity
min order 6 bottles
* This is a Long-term Pre-arrival item and is available for online ordering only. This item will ship on a future date after a 4-8 months transfer time. For additional details about Pre-arrival Items please visit our FAQ page.
Professional Ratings
WA
96
WE
95
WS
95
JS
95
DC
94
VM
94
WA
96
Rated 96 by Wine Advocate
The Altesino 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva holds tight to its unique character and power. The classic 2016 vintage produced generous wines that are layered and rich but also coiled tightly at their core. This wine exemplifies this point, adding lots of tart Sangiovese fruit and freshness along the way. It also shows an impressive richness of flavors with dried cherry, licorice, pressed violets, balsam herb and dusty limestone. The caveat with this wine, should you decide to drink it early, is that it needs extra time to open (and a double decanting would also help). This 10,000-bottle production opens beautifully in time.
WE
95
Rated 95 by Wine Enthusiast
This polished red opens with inviting aromas of ripe woodland berries, violet, new leather and camphor. Full-bodied and elegant, the smooth palate features fleshy black cherry, raspberry jam, licorice and tobacco alongside velvety, fine-grained tannins. Drink 2024–2031.
WS
95
Rated 95 by Wine Spectator
A beautifully integrated and solidly built Brunello, this is hallmarked by textbook aromas and flavors of cherry, strawberry, iron, sanguine and tobacco. Delivers accents of herbs, earth and almond that emerge as it plays out on the long, detailed finish. Approachable now and should age over the next decade or more. Best from 2024 through 2040. 1,250 cases made, 750 cases imported.
JS
95
Rated 95 by James Suckling
There’s beautiful purity in this Brunello with cherry and floral aromas, as well as hints of lavender and rosemary flowers. It’s full-bodied with linear tannins that provide form and focus. It’s extremely long and beautiful, yet needs three to four years to show all the goodness it has. Try after 2024 and onwards.
DC
94
Rated 94 by Decanter
Like its sister estate – the nearby Caparzo – Altesino boasts vineyards in different sectors of Montalcino. The Riserva blends fruit from southern vineyards near Sant’Angelo in Colle and Castelnuovo dell’Abate with northerly plots, including Montosoli. Pretty yet restrained, this leads with floral fragrances of pressed violet and rose, then progresses to eucalypt and brushwood. It sits gracefully on the palate. Long, silky tannins build with powdery structure. Though the wine gains density, it ultimately expresses elegance over power. Its distinguishing characteristic in 2016 is a pleasant bitterness that recalls cocoa and quinine. Very mouth-cleansing.
VM
94
Rated 94 by Vinous Media
The 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva is so incredibly dark and inward that it prompted me to open a second bottle just to confirm that impression. After an hour, the bouquet started to come to life, with hints of menthol and mint giving way to nuances of black currant and animal tones. It’s much more expressive on the palate, where silky textures are cooled by vibrant acids, and tart wild berry fruits mix with salty minerals and inner violet florals. The 2016 is long and structured, showing balsam herbs, black licorice and a flourish of inner sweetness. This is such an interesting showing as, other than the bouquet, all of the ingredients are here and well proportioned for a long, steady evolution. I’m very intrigued to see where this understated beauty is going over time. Until then, I chose to remain somewhat conservative.
Product Details
size
750ml
country
Italy
region
Tuscany
Additional vintages
Overview
The Altesino 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva holds tight to its unique character and power. The classic 2016 vintage produced generous wines that are layered and rich but also coiled tightly at their core. This wine exemplifies this point, adding lots of tart Sangiovese fruit and freshness along the way. It also shows an impressive richness of flavors with dried cherry, licorice, pressed violets, balsam herb and dusty limestone. The caveat with this wine, should you decide to drink it early, is that it needs extra time to open (and a double decanting would also help). This 10,000-bottle production opens beautifully in time.
green grapes

Varietal: Sangiovese

Sangiovese qualifies as one of the truly ancient grape varietals of the Old World, and whilst it is now grown in several countries across the globe, it very much remains a classic grape of Italian wine making. One of the key features of the Sangiovese grape varietal is that it can act as a 'sponge' of flavors when maturing in oak, taking on the earthy and vanilla tones present in the barrel. These dark grapes produce a wide variety of fine wines, from the lively and strawberry flavored young wines which are growing in popularity, to the complex, spicy and delicious aged wines which are treasured by drinkers and collectors worldwide. With a history which dates back to before the times of the Roman empire, Sangiovese will no doubt continue to be a favorite for wineries wishing to plant grapes which will guarantee quality, and will always attract wine lovers worldwide.
barrel

Region: Tuscany

All over the stunning region of Tuscany in central Italy, you'll see rolling hills covered in green, healthy grapevines. This region is currently Italy's third largest producer of wines, but interestingly wineries here are generally happy with lower yields holding higher quality grapes, believing that they have a responsibility to uphold the excellent reputation of Tuscany, rather than let it slip into 'quantity over quality' wine-making as it did in the mid twentieth century. The region has a difficult soil type to work with, but the excellent climate and generations of expertise more than make up for this problem. Most commonly, Tuscan vintners grow Sangiovese and Vernaccia varietal grapes, although more and more varietals are being planted nowadays in order to produce other high quality wine styles.
fields

Country: Italy

It isn't difficult to understand why Italy is famed not just for the quality of its wines, but also for the vast variety and range of characteristics found in the wines there. The terrain of the country varies wildly, from the lush rolling green hills and valley of Tuscany, to the sun drenched rocky coasts of Sicily, the mountainous and alpine regions of the north, and the marshy lowlands of the east. Italy really does have a little bit of everything. Combine this huge range of landscapes with an almost perfect climate for grape cultivation, and you have a country seemingly designed for viticultural excellence. The results speak for themselves, and it is clear to see that wine has become an inseparable part of Italian culture as a result of its abundance and brilliance. Each village, city and region has a local wine perfectly matched with the cuisine of the area, and not an evening passes without the vast majority of Italian families raising a glass of locally sourced wine with pride and pleasure.
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Winery Altesino
green grapes

Varietal: Sangiovese

Sangiovese qualifies as one of the truly ancient grape varietals of the Old World, and whilst it is now grown in several countries across the globe, it very much remains a classic grape of Italian wine making. One of the key features of the Sangiovese grape varietal is that it can act as a 'sponge' of flavors when maturing in oak, taking on the earthy and vanilla tones present in the barrel. These dark grapes produce a wide variety of fine wines, from the lively and strawberry flavored young wines which are growing in popularity, to the complex, spicy and delicious aged wines which are treasured by drinkers and collectors worldwide. With a history which dates back to before the times of the Roman empire, Sangiovese will no doubt continue to be a favorite for wineries wishing to plant grapes which will guarantee quality, and will always attract wine lovers worldwide.
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Region: Tuscany

All over the stunning region of Tuscany in central Italy, you'll see rolling hills covered in green, healthy grapevines. This region is currently Italy's third largest producer of wines, but interestingly wineries here are generally happy with lower yields holding higher quality grapes, believing that they have a responsibility to uphold the excellent reputation of Tuscany, rather than let it slip into 'quantity over quality' wine-making as it did in the mid twentieth century. The region has a difficult soil type to work with, but the excellent climate and generations of expertise more than make up for this problem. Most commonly, Tuscan vintners grow Sangiovese and Vernaccia varietal grapes, although more and more varietals are being planted nowadays in order to produce other high quality wine styles.
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Country: Italy

It isn't difficult to understand why Italy is famed not just for the quality of its wines, but also for the vast variety and range of characteristics found in the wines there. The terrain of the country varies wildly, from the lush rolling green hills and valley of Tuscany, to the sun drenched rocky coasts of Sicily, the mountainous and alpine regions of the north, and the marshy lowlands of the east. Italy really does have a little bit of everything. Combine this huge range of landscapes with an almost perfect climate for grape cultivation, and you have a country seemingly designed for viticultural excellence. The results speak for themselves, and it is clear to see that wine has become an inseparable part of Italian culture as a result of its abundance and brilliance. Each village, city and region has a local wine perfectly matched with the cuisine of the area, and not an evening passes without the vast majority of Italian families raising a glass of locally sourced wine with pride and pleasure.