2001 Altesino - Brunello di Montalcino Montosoli Sangiovese - Italy - Tuscany - Brunello di Montalcino - Red

($95) Good deep red. Nutty oak, coffee and pineapple on the nose. Juicy, oaky and tightly wound; dense but cool. Began rather stern but grew sweeter with aeration, finishing with substantial tannins that avoid dryness. A second sample showed aromas of nectarine and coconut and finished leathery and dry. This wine is outside my parameters for Brunello. (Winebow, Inc., Hohokus, NJ)

Altesino is located in a spectacular spot that affords views of Montosoli, the hillside from which the estate makes its most famous Brunello. In past years I have enjoyed this producer's wines very much, often purchasing them for my own cellar. Unfortunately the estate's 2001s have proven to be very inconsistent in my multiple tastings of the wines. I can only recommend the Montosoli, with the caveat that my notes refer to Lot # 5343 (indicated on US Importer Leonardo LoCascio's back label). There are four bottlings of the Brunello and two of the Montosoli, and bottles of both wines purchased in Europe have shown significant variation. Altesino's 2001 Brunello di Montalcino Montosoli (Lot#5343) presents notes of chocolate, toasted oak, earthiness and super-ripe fruit on a full-bodied, ample frame with modest complexity. Underyling notes of mustiness and greenness convey an overall impression of rusticity that is out of character for Altesino, making this Brunello one of the vintage's few notable underachievers. This was the best of the three bottles of this wine I have tasted so far.

Very beautiful aromas of flowers, ripe fruit and crushed blackberries. Full-bodied yet refined. Layers of tannins. Balanced. Montosoli is a great Brunello vineyard. 1,500 cases made.

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