2012 Ruffino Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Greppone Mazzi

2012 Ruffino Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Greppone Mazzi

2012 Ruffino Brunello di Montalcino Tenuta Greppone Mazzi, Sangiovese from Montalcino,Tuscany,Italy

Ruby red with garnet hues. Intense aromas of ripe plums, cassis, and maraschino cherry with notes of incense, cocoa, sweet tobacco, and spicy black pepper. The palate is full-bodied with an elegant and complex structure. The tannins are persistent and pronounced yet rich and smooth. Very well balanced with red fruit, chocolate, and sweet tobacco on the long finish.

Among Italy’s elite red grape varieties, Sangiovese has the perfect intersection of bright red fruit and savory earthiness and is responsible for the best red wines of Tuscany. While it is best known as the chief component of Chianti, it is also the main grape in Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and reaches the height of its power and intensity in the complex, long-lived Brunello di Montalcino. Somm Secret—Sangiovese doubles under the alias, Nielluccio, on the French island of Corsica where it produces distinctly floral and refreshing reds and rosés.

Famous for its bold, layered and long-lived red, Brunello di Montalcino, the town of Montalcino is about 70 miles south of Florence, and has a warmer and drier climate than that of its neighbor, Chianti. The Sangiovese grape is king here, as it is in Chianti, but Montalcino has its own clone called Brunello.

In 1877, Illario and Leopoldo Ruffino laid the foundations of their dream to make the most known and loved Italian wines in the world from the heart of Tuscany. At their winery in Pontassieve, just outside of Florence, they began producing wines according to a strict quality standard and a rigorous technical research. Soon, Ruffino became an international symbol of the Chianti region, and won numerous awards, including the prestigious gold medal at the Bordeaux Wine Fair in 1895, affirming the quality of its wine.