We arrive in the picturesque town of Montalcino in soaring temperatures but there is an excitement in the air. It’s Rosso time. Our trip coincides with the region’s Rosso di Montalcino party celebration – the Red Revolution – a lively evening tasting event held with local producers in the stunning medieval fortress which is imposing above the town.
Local producers regard Rosso not just as a preview of Brunello but rather as a stylistic opportunity in its own right
“Now’s the time to discover Rosso,” exclaims one taster. “It is no longer simply a baby brother to Brunello.” Many Brunello-producing wine estates, both large and small, are embracing Rosso as a serious, standalone expression of their terroir.
But more of that later. The Consorzio is in a period of historic change which affects the region as a whole. An important shift in Montalcino has been a data-driven quality evaluation of the terroir and a cartography project to define various subzones and altitudes within the appellation.
Consorzio mapping and vintage assessment
Gabriele Gorelli – Italy’s first MW presents the new data-based Brunello di Montalcino cartography.
The Consorzio has worked with climatologists, experts in the terroir, and Italy’s first MW, Gabriele Gorelli, analysing and mapping the factors that typically characterise the denomination and the region (altitude, slope aspect, weather data, diurnal range etc).
At the same time, Gorelli explains that the Consorzio has abandoned its five-star annual rating system from the 2020 vintage onwards in favour of a model combining satellite weather data, local soil analysis, and blind tastings by international experts.
“Montalcino is about much more than a simple hotel-style Trip Advisor rating,” he says.
Gorelli presents a range of Brunello wines from different areas in the Montalcino region and reveals the descriptors decided upon. For Gorelli there are three words that describe the 2020 vintage: ‘captivating, bright and succulent’.“We want to change the narrative away from ratings and abstract tradition towards measurable terroir expression and we can better monitor climate trends,” he says.
In another change, the Consorzio has expanded the Rosso DOC zone by 350 hectares, adding production capacity without new plantings.
“Often Rosso has been perceived as a declassified wine or placeholder, while the more prestigious wine matured – but that narrative is changing fast. Producers are creating Rosso wines with their own identity, sense of place and purpose,” declares Gorelli.
What is Rosso di Montalcino?
Both Brunello and Rosso are made from the same indigenous Sangiovese grape in the same, defined Brunello di Montalcino geographic area. The essential difference lies in the ageing requirements and oak maturation. Rosso di Montalcino can be released on the first day of September of the year following the harvest, and ageing in oak is not required – although many producers do use oak to add structure and/or complexity.
Brunello, on the other hand, must be aged for at least four years before it is released, and two of those years must be in oak – and then at least four months in the bottle. The earliest it can be released is on January 1, five years following the harvest. And the top Riserva Brunello wines have to age for an additional year.
Brunello has the top DOCG classification and Rosso di Montalcino a lesser DOC created in 1984 to give producers more flexibility and a quicker path to market while maintaining quality standards and regional integrity.
Diversity of styles and Rosso winemaking
The Fattoria dei Barbi winery pioneered the production and promotion of Brunello. It exemplifies long-established classic Brunello winemaking with Riserva and heritage cuvées. With a large estate, wine museum and proud family history going back centuries, its Brunello is structured, herbal, and earthy, with ageing potential spanning decades. Over lunch we savour the cheese and charcuterie they make themselves and are treated to vintages going back as far as 1957.
Rosso di Montalcino’s fresher and more approachable style (and comparatively lower price point) is also gaining attention alongside Brunello’s big, bold, intense, and complex wine. The best examples we taste combine the vibrant cherry fruit, floral lift and energetic acidity of Sangiovese with a drink-now charm that contrasts with Brunello’s austerity and tannins.
Local producers regard Rosso not just as a preview of Brunello but rather as a stylistic opportunity in its own right. Rosso is made using techniques such as fresher fruit, earlier harvests, shorter macerations and, in some cases, use of tonneaux, amphorae, or concrete rather than large botti to express its distinct character.
Luciano Ciolfi, winemaker at SanLorenzo, passionate about sustainable viticulture and traditional authentic wines that reflect the terroir of the region.
SanLorenzo is an organic family-run estate passionate about sustainable viticulture.It is clear Rosso is made to reflect excellent Brunello-level quality but harvested early and aged in different types of vessels. Steel is used for both, then Rosso is aged in barriques and the Brunello in large casks. The Rosso is structured and savoury, yet fresher and more vibrant.
The best Rosso made by the most sought-after estates is so good, as well as such good value, that it can be almost impossible to find after release and quite expensive on the secondary market. In this rarefied category, Poggio di Sotto’s Rosso stands out among a select few.
Leonardo Berti, Poggio di Sotto’s winemaker.
Poggio di Sotto has similarly achieved cult status for the quality of both wines. Essentially the differentiation is the length of the wood ageing. Rosso production is only diverted after the first phase of maturation. The Rosso is more than two years in foudres, the Brunello more than three years. They have “Burgundian elegance with fine structure where Rosso and Brunello are essential kin – differing only by ageing time,” as one imbiber puts it.
At the small artisan Collemattoni winery situated on a hill to the south of the town, each Brunello and Rosso bottling comes from specific vineyard parcels. Grapes are fermented in stainless steel tanks in its modern winery, then aged for differing times in Slavonian oak barrels. Its Rosso is particularly expressive – it balances fruit purity and light oak spice with more verticality than typical ‘entry-level’ wines, offering a serious and food-friendly profile.
Cecilia Leoneschi, Castiglion del Bosco's head winemaker
By contrast, Castiglion del Bosco is a large, prestigious estate where we taste a portfolio of Rosso. Walking through vineyards in remote hilltops (they are situated in an UNESCO-listed national park) we dine in one of the estate’s exclusive 5-star hotel restaurants. The wine L’America is the freshest and most approachable, designed for early consumption. Site-specific Deimassi has more richness from oak ageing, drifting close to Brunello’s structure while Gauggiole, the estate’s premier Rosso, balances structure and elegance through distinctive ageing in concrete.
The shift in Rosso di Montalcino winemaking
Sarah Heller MW presents Rosso di Montalcino masterclass in Montalcino
Italian wine expert Sarah Heller MW says she senses a growing shift toward producing Rosso di Montalcino as a serious wine in its own right.
“It is not simply the case that mature or lower-quality vineyard lots are funnelled in Rosso.” There are moves towards site specificity, shorter macerations and lower extraction, favouring elegance, neutral oak, amphorae or concrete to enhance purity and earlier drinking windows. And there’s ageing potential in bottle too.
The joy is to see how the styles of Rosso di Montalcino can vary widely from early drinking: fresh and fruity; mini-Brunello style (structured and traditional) to single-vineyard expressions of terroir. The narrative is all about the winemaker’s philosophy, the vineyard location, vinification choices, and the role the Rosso plays in the estate’s hierarchy.
Heller: “Winemakers are experimenting to express vintage, terroir and style. It is a category in its own right."
Heller presents us in her masterclass in Montalcino with several wines including the Col d‘Orcia Rosso 2015 (in magnum), Casisano Rosso 2016, Poggio Di Sotto Rosso 2017 and the SanLorenzo Rosso 2018. These show how well Rosso can age and have potential to be cellar worthy.
The recent vintages have more vivid drink-now styles that appeal to modern palates and cuisine. “Rosso loves food – it’s the perfect choice for Japanese food, Nordic food, vegetarian food… you wouldn’t want a Brunello you would want a Rosso,” says Elisa Sesti who is a well-known local winemaker with Sesti – Castello di Argiano who has long produced both outstanding Rosso and Brunello.
Heller passionately believes Rosso has come of age and is no longer simply Brunello’s baby brother.
“Winemakers are experimenting to express vintage, terroir and style. It is a category in its own right – some bottlings even surpass some lesser Brunello in nuance and drinkability.”
