Few wine brands in the world can boast a history of over seven centuries, like the one that belongs to the Frescobaldi family, one of the most illustrious standard-bearer of the made in Italy wine in the world. The Frescobaldi, in fact, are a family whose first exponents moved from the Val di Pesa, where they owned land including the estate of Castiglioni (their oldest agricultural property), to Florence around the year 1000. Since then, the bond between the family and this city has remained constant, with the lodge, the tower and the palace of this family, built in the homonymous Piazza de’ Frescobaldi, to witness the unchanged presence over the centuries.
To understand what this brand means at a global level today, it is necessary to start from an aspect more closely related to viticulture, that of the decision, in the middle of 1800, to introduce the cultivation of varietals until then unknown in Tuscany: Carbernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay and Sauvignon. Roots firmly Tuscan and production that looks to tradition but also to the international vocation, these could be the two parallel directions in which the brand Frescobaldi develops itself, with Vittorio, Ferdinando and Leonardo, in the 20th century, and Lamberto, currently engaged in defining the uniqueness of each of the individual estates owned, and their wines. Lamberto, however, is also the man who has definitively introduced the principles of Integrated and sustainable agriculture in all estates, in addition to adopting renewable photovoltaic energy in all estates, and a whole range of measures to reduce environmental pollution and CO2 dispersion.
Among the estates belonging to the estate is that of Castelgiocondo, an ancient stronghold dating back to the 12th century with land in which, in the 19th century, the family, one of the first in the area, began to produce Brunello di Montalcino. This estate includes, in its current production line, Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Ripe al Convento, one of the most famous wines of this family. From vineyards of over 30 years on galestro land, rich in clay, calcium and other minerals, between 350 and 450 meters above sea level, in the south-west of the hill of Montalcino, with a South/ South-West exposure, is born this pure Sangiovese Grosso. The grapes, after a first selection on the vine during the harvest, undergo a second sorting in the cellar, then ferment and macerate for about a month, in steel, on the skins. Then the wine undergoes malolactic fermentation and an aging of almost 5 years between large Slavonian barrels and barriques and, finally, in bottle, before commercialization.
The 2010 vintage has a pale ruby color, tending to garnet, with an olfactory range that begins with durone cherry, plum, vinyl and eucalyptus, followed by pomegranate, orange peel, pot pourri and humus, with concluding echoes of sweet tobacco, vanilla, roasted coffee and leather. The mouthfeel is immediately characterized by a discreet softness and an excellent citrine freshness, with the sapid-mineral side and the balsamic one that slowly make their way, combined with a hint of pink pepper and the return of red fruit and spice that accompany the sip until an excellent length closure.
Rating: 95/100
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