Report from: Benvenuto Brunello, Toronto
05 Dec 2014- Details
- Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy
(March 10, 2014) ...
Let's talk Brunello for a minute or two ...
The total surface area of the territory is 59,305 acres of which only 8,648 acres (or about 15%) is under vine. Brunello di Montalcino makes up 5120; Rosso di Montalcino 1260 ... the rest is a mix of Moscadello, Sant'Antimo and other wines. For the purposes of the this tasting the majority of the wines fell under the Brunello and Rosso designation, so let's take a peak at what we're getting into with these wines.
Brunello di Montalcino is a DOCG wine - the highest level in the Italian wine designation. It is made up of Sangiovese, has a maximum yield of 8 tons per hectare, must be aged 2 years in oak and a minimum of 4 months in bottle (6 months for Riserva designation).
Rosso di Montalcino is at the DOC level - is made with Sangiovese and yields in the fields in 9 tons per hectare
So let's take a look at the tastings and the wines that were being poured on this day ... Click here to see the pictorial evidence of the tasting.
(August 10, 2014) ... I was invited to speak at this year Vintage Tasting for the Lake Erie North Shore wineries (now known as EPIC), which was being held at Muscedere this year ... Over the course of their 8 years or so this winery has proven to be one of the flagship producers of the region. Its also nice to see the progression of this winery's improvement in winemaking by winemaker Rob Muscedere ... Rob invited me and fellow writer Konrad Ejbich to taste a 5-year vertical of his Cabernet Sauvignon endeavors over the years - here are the results of that tasting:
