IL MARRONETO Brunello di Montalcino 2021 Bottle

Description

Over the last few years, Il Marroneto has rocketed to become one of the most sought-after producers in the world of fine wine. Situated immediately below the walls of Montalcino itself, the vineyard sits at the top of the hill facing out into the valley. Il Marroneto's old vines, altitude, and exposure to the valley's winds produce wine that is ethereal, complex, delightful, and thought-provoking all at once. Winemaker Alessandro Mori was described as "the Sangiovese whisperer" by Monica Larner of the Wine Advocate due to his incredible ability to draw out the grape's innate character with immense purity and energy. These magical wines have captured the world’s imagination, and their emotional impact is hard to put into words.

JAMES SUCKLING 98 points
A dark and complex wine with aromas of black cherries, cherry pits, dried flowers, licorice and hints of leather and intoxicating violets. There is elegance as well as depth. Medium- to full-bodied with great density and concentration, sleek tannins of outstanding ripeness, graceful acidity and a super-polished finish. Licorice aftertaste. Drink or hold.

DECANTER 97 points
Drinking Window: 2024 - 2036
Mori described the 2019 vintage as ‘perfect, no disease...lots of fantastic grapes,’ when he visited Decanter in December 2023. Indeed, 2019 is looking superb across the board. Il Marroneto's Brunello di Montalcino 2019 has the most incredible scent; an enticing waft of aromatic cherry and fragrant violets. In the mouth it's supremely precise, with a silky texture and sweet red fruits. Intense, chiselled and sapid, there's a bewitching pureness and delicacy here. Delicious.

VINOUS 97 points
Drinking window: 2030 - 2046
The 2021 Brunello di Montalcino wafts up with an exotic blend of crushed sour cherries and dried violets complemented by cedar spice box and nuances of incense. It is seamless and silken in feel, displaying notable weight while also coming across as graceful and refined, with a remarkably pretty blend of wild strawberries and a crunch of minerality. A raspberry sauce concentration and sour citrus twang remain as edgy tannins linger, offset by a bump of riveting acidity. This is a fantastic vintage for Il Marroneto's Brunello, here taking on a level of complexity and concentration I usually associate with the Madonna delle Grazie.

THE WINE ADVOCATE 95 points
Drink Date: 2027 - 2048
Il Marroneto’s 2021 Brunello di Montalcino is immediately captivating, showing lift and verticality that sets it clearly apart, with bright cherry fruit, grenadine and grilled watermelon underscored by an energetic, punchy edge. There is an appealing sweetness to the aromatics alongside hints of white peppercorn and pressed violet, with lifted tones that flirt with volatility yet remain controlled, carried by remarkably soft and polymerized tannins. The 2021 is distinctly austere and complex, etched with mineral precision and built with multiple layers stacked one atop another, gaining depth rather than breadth. Before fermentation is complete, the cap is soft and malic acid is not yet developed, and the wine is racked with residual sugar (from six to 10 grams per liter). The skins are pressed at 350 atmospheres in a vertical press, and the free-run juice is combined with the must to complete fermentation very slowly, over many months, bubbling happily along. It ages in oak botti for 42 months. This is a release of 22,000 bottles.