Brunello Di Montalcino La Mannella Cortonesi 2018

Brunello Di Montalcino La Mannella, Cortonesi, Tuscany, Italy, 2018

Grape: 100% Sangiovese, clay/limestone soil, 36 months' ageing in large Slavonian oak botte

Producer Tasting Note:

Characterised by an intense ruby red colour, on the nose, it is complex with aromas of red fruit, accompanied by spicy notes. The warm and juicy palate offers black currant, blackberry, floral, mineral and underbrush flavours, and this red shows some muscle, ending with a terrific aftertaste of ripe fruit, mineral and vegetal accents, alongside tones of campfire ash and leather. It offers a velvety, medium to full-bodied texture, feeling balanced overall, but needs some time for the dense tannins to integrate fully.

Critics' Tasting Notes

"Lustrous mid to deep ruby. Firm, concentrated nose with dark spice. Rich cherry fruit with a charming oak note and plenty of grainy tannins. Very long and deep and needs more time to properly unfold."

17/20 points, Walter Speller, JancisRobinson.com, December 2022

"The nose recalls an October day, as an autumnal earthiness mingles with the density of dark chocolate and the spice of anise, and the last of the summer's stone fruit. On the palate, the chocolate grows sweeter as Halloween approaches, but earthy, bitter notes persist through the astringent, chalky, tannic finish."

95/100 points, WINE ENTHUSIAST, December 2023

Tommaso Cortonesi’s grandfather bought La Mannella in the 1970s. The estate spreads over 56 hectares, eight of which produce Brunello di Montalcino. The major vineyard is around the winery at La Mannella, just north of Montalcino itself, but there is another vineyard near Castelnuovo dell’ Abate, to the south east of the town. Originally, just one Brunello was made, a blend from the two separate vineyards, but in the 1990s, Tommaso and his father realised that the two vineyards had distinctly different soil composition. They decided that better wine would be made if each terroir was properly realised in the bottle, and thus were born Poggiarelli (in the south east) and La Mannella (in the north).

This wine is from the La Mannella vineyard, which is mainly clay and limestone at an altitude of 280-350 m. The oldest vines were planted in 1983, and another two plots were planted in 1998. It is 100% Sangiovese with the final wine spending three years in 30hl Slavonian oak botte. In total about 25,000 bottles are made.

All the wines at this estate have great purity of fruit and are vibrant expressions of their terroir. La Mannella is a supremely silky, seductive Brunello with great length and delicious mouthfeel. It is a Brunello to enjoy on those occasions when only the very, very best will do!

Food Match: Rich and savoury dishes including venison, wild boar, pheasant, mushroom and truffle dishes, aged hard cheeses (Parmesan & Pecorino)