Seven Tips for Buying a Brunello di Montalcino and Enjoying It to the Fullest!

Brunello di Montalcino is one of Italy’s most prestigious wines, prized worldwide for its quality, elegance and longevity. If you’re planning to buy a bottle, it’s important to know what to look for. In this guide, you’ll discover the key features and tips for choosing the perfect bottle.

1. Origin: The Importance of DOCG Certification
Brunello di Montalcino is produced exclusively in the region around the picturesque village of Montalcino in Tuscany. The wine carries the DOCG quality mark (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita), the highest quality classification in Italy. Both the grapes must be grown in the DOCG Brunello di Montalcino wine region, but the wine must also age and be bottled in the DOCG region. With some cheap Brunellos it can happen that the wine is bottled, for example, at a winery in Siena. In that case the wine can never be an approved Brunello. The Brunello Cosortium checks the wines and the producers' logbooks throughout the entire production process. You can find the affiliated producers on the Consortium website . Always check whether the label states the origin.

The wine is made from 100% Sangiovese Grosso, a specific and high-quality clone of the Sangiovese grape. This gives it its unique structure and taste.

2. Aging: Patience pays off - A Brunello is only released after years of aging, which increases the complexity and depth of the wine.

Standard Brunello: Minimum 5 years of maturation, of which at least 2 years in oak and at least 4 months in bottle.

Riserva Brunello: Minimum 6 years of maturation, with more focus on refinement and complexity.

Keep in mind that younger wines are fruitier and more approachable, while older vintages offer more earthy and secondary flavors.

3. Vintages : The influence of the harvest year
Not every harvest year produces the same quality. The weather conditions in a particular year have a great influence on the grapes and therefore on the final wine. This has an effect on the taste, fruitiness, complexity and storage potential.

Top years: 1997, 2001, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2015, 2016, 2019. These wines have excellent ageing potential and complex flavours.
Good years: 2005, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2018, 2020. Often slightly less complex, but still of high quality.

For an overview of the best harvest years, read our blog .

Younger wines from top years (such as 2019) are not yet fully ready to drink. Older vintages are often more refined. In general, we suggest drinking Brunello from 10 years after the harvest. So the 2015 harvest is best drunk from 2025. After that, you still have about 10 years in general to enjoy the 2015.

4. Choose a reputable manufacturer
The quality of a Brunello can vary greatly from one winemaker to another. Therefore, choose reliable producers with a proven reputation.

Classic and elegant: such as: Biondi-Santi (the founder of Brunello), Ciacci Piccolomini, Tassi, Capanna, Fuligni and Uccelliera.
Modern style, such as: Castiglion del Bosco, Casanova di Neri and Valdicava, known for full, rich wines.
Organic and refined: for example San Polino, Poggio di Sotto and San Filippo.

All Brunello's in the Brunolo.nl assortment meet the highest standards. Some producers have the highest scores and the most beautiful wines, but then the price is often also there. Other producers make fantastic beautiful Brunello's but not top segment, but their prices are much more favorable and therefore attractive to most Brunello lovers.

5. Taste profile : What makes Brunello unique?
Brunello di Montalcino is known for its complexity and balance. Typical characteristics are:

- Colour: Deep ruby ​​red, which changes to garnet red as the wine ages.
- Aromas: Cherries, plums, dried herbs, leather, tobacco and sometimes a hint of truffle.
- Taste: Dry, full and powerful, with firm tannins, lively acids and a long aftertaste.

Choose a wine that is balanced: no single element should dominate.

6. Storage potential : An investment in the future
Brunello is known for its excellent ageing capacity. A good bottle can often last 20-30 years, if stored under ideal conditions: cool (10-15°C), dark, and with minimal temperature fluctuations and no daylight, so store in the closed wine box or crate, or of course even better in a wine climate cabinet.

For immediate consumption: Choose a wine that is at least 10-15 years old.
For collectors: Consider a younger vintage from a top year, such as 2016, and let it mature further.

If you want to enjoy your preserved Brunello optimally, open the bottle at least 4 to 6 hours in advance and pour a little. Or decant the wine. Note: also make sure that the drinking temperature is around 18 C at most.

7. Price: What can you expect?
The price of Brunello di Montalcino varies depending on the producer, vintage and classification.

The standard price for Brunello varies from €35 - €70, a Cru Brunello, where the grapes come from the best part of the vineyard and the vines are often at least 25 years old, the price can rise from around €75 to around €150 per bottle. This also applies to the Riserva Brunellos. Brunellos that are offered for less than €30,= you should look at critically, often these are not real, or of poor quality.

Be careful with heavily discounted bottles or those from unknown suppliers; unfortunately, there are also counterfeit products on the market.

8. Where to buy ?
For the best experience, buy Brunello from:

Specialized wine merchant: Such as BrunoloVini, where the owners have been coming to Montalcino for over 20 years, who know the area and the winegrowers. At Brunolo.nl you are 100% sure that the Brunellos meet all DOCG quality mark requirements and that they are Brunellos of absolute top quality.

Wine auctions: For older vintages and special editions. Always check the condition of the bottle. Buying here is risky, because you never have control over how the bottles have been stored. If they have been next to the central heating, you cannot see this on the bottle or case, but you can taste it, because the slow development of the wine is continuously disturbed. Cheap is expensive.

To help our customers as best as possible, we have made 2 selections, Best - Price Quality and the Brunello Top Selection .

Conclusion
Buying a Brunello di Montalcino is an experience in itself. By paying attention to origin, vintage, producer and flavor profile, you can find the perfect bottle to suit your taste and budget. Whether you are looking for a wine to drink immediately or want to save a bottle for a special occasion, Brunello rarely disappoints.

Want more advice or tips on specific vintages or producers? Let me know – I’m happy to help! Send us an email to: info@brunolo.nl or call us +31(0)850 431 140. We’re happy to help.