Argiano Brunello di Montalcino 2016

Why is this Wine so Yummy?

About Argiano

Argiano has been around since 1580.

Argiano is part of the history of the Montalcino region and it’s one of the most prestigious and historical reality in the area. The name is thought to derive from the first settlements in Roman times – ‘Ara Janus’, referring to the god Janus. Another potential origin could be ‘the land of the River Orcia’ – known in ancient times as ‘Orgia’ and therefore Argiano.

The history of Argiano has a turning point in the 16th century with the decline of the Tolomei family in favor of the noble Pecci family from Sienna and with the construction of their magnificent villa between 1580 and 1596, perfect exempla of a 16th century noble residence. The name of the villa, Bell’Aria, was chosen when the Pecci decided to build it preserving the original center of the castle on the crest of the hill precisely because of the air quality.

The wine-making industry of Argiano was born also thanks to the construction of the cellar in those years, about four centuries ago. Besides, the 1616 manuscript of Bartolomeo Gherardini, the Auditor General in Siena, makes reference to the production of olive oil.

Over the course of the centuries the Estate passed through various noble families until it came under the inspired leadership of Lady Ersilia Caetani Lovatelli, who was able to promote the products of Argiano in major cultural gatherings at the time. It’s well-know what the great poet Carducci declaimed in his verse: “I cleanse myself of this bitterness with the wine of Argiano, which is extremely good…”

Argiano won the gold medal at the Brussels Food Fair in 1932 for fine dessert and table wines, and in 1935 it featured in the Trade Exhibition of typical Italian wines. In 1967 Argiano made history with the Brunello of Montalcino, playing a key role as a founding organization in the birth of the Consortium. In 1992 the Estate passed from the Caetani Lovatelli to the Countess Noemi Marone Cinzano, who introduced significant innovations to the management of the wine-making industry and revived the name of Argiano. Along with the countess came Giacomo Tachis, the world famous oenologist; a unique partnership which will bring to the creation of Solengo, the great Supertuscan of Montalcino.

And so we come to the present, with the transfer of ownership and company direction in 2013 into the hands of Bernardino Sani, who from 2015 also signs the wines.

Bernardino Sani of Argiano explores the estate and the 2015 vintage in the video below.

In the Vineyard

Argiano practices an organic and sustainable method of agriculture. It believes in the balance of biodiversity and strives to attain it, through techniques aiming to soil fertility, implementing with natural products like weeds, chestnut tannins, propolis and zeolite. Even natural insecticides are banned; instead, techniques like sexual confusion and the release of adversarial insects are employed. The “bee” project which consists in placing hives next to the vineyards is joins the ones related to the usage of Mycorrhizae and the Microzonation study. The latter in particular, comprising the discovery of different microzones within single vineyard plots, enables to target and focus our approaches.

In the Winery

Over the years Argiano has headed toward a more elegant restrained style working to identify micro plots in the vineyard, harvest and ferment them separately to learn more about each of these parcels.

Cold soaked prior to fermentation to extract color and aromatics. Spontaneous fermentation over the course of two weeks in temperature controlled stainless steel tanks. Malolactic fermentation occurred naturally in cement tanks.

Aging of about 30 months in Slavonian oak barrels of different capacity (10/15/30/50 Hl). Bottling ocurred in April/May during the most favorable moon phases. Long aging in bottle.

The 2016 Vintage

From Vinous ‘2016 Brunello di Montalcino: Radiance Personified’

Let’s consider how long we’ve all been looking forward to Montalcino’s next great vintage. I’m thinking back to the release of the 2010s, walking the aisles of Benvenuto Brunello and tasting from table to table. Aromatically, the wines made your eyes roll back in your head, followed by an assault on the palate of intense and complex primary fruit, which was quickly clenched and held firm by aggressive tannins. When the reviews finally hit, it was like nothing I had ever seen before. Suddenly, every retailer in the country was pumping out email after email to feed the unquenchable thirst that consumers had for Montalcino’s next great vintage. 

However, after the dust settled, and 2011 arrived, people seemed to be satisfied. The 2011s were ripe and juicy, and consumers were happy to allow them to fill restaurant wine lists instead of their cellars. Next was 2012, just as warm as 2011, yet prettier and more balanced; but it still didn’t move the needle. Two thousand thirteen had some potential and quickened our pulses for a time, yet it wasn’t the next 2010. At this point, we all started to feel the hunger – when would Montalcino have its next great vintage? However, it was just around this time that the 2016 Rosso di Montalcinos began to arrive, giving us a peek into what producers were calling a perfect vintage. The wines were dark and effusive in how they excited the senses, full of energy yet also dense in their fruit profiles, and with structure that was unexpected from the Rosso category. Suddenly, there came a glimmer of hope; and since that time, we have all been waiting for 2016 Brunello di Montalcino.

But now the big question is: Do the 2016s live up to our expectations? Oh, yes; they certainly do.

Where in the World is Argiano?

Argiano is Montalcino, Tuscany. The video below explores the formation of the slopes over the millennia. You’ll see how the vineyards rest on the South West side of the hill of Montalcino with Soldera to the north and Banfi to the south. You can see just how dramatically the geology can change across just a single producer’s vineayrds.