Monday, September 26, 2011

Villa i Cipressi Brunello di Montalcino

An interview with Dario Ciacci,
Villa i Cipressi  estate in Montalcino

                              

Ciao Dario. Thank you for your time and congratulations on the awards and accolades that your wines are receiving.


How long has Villa i Cipressi estate been in your family?

Villa i Cipressi has been in our family for approximately 30 years. We are a boutique winery combined with other agricultural interests including beekeeping. It was in the 1990’s that sangiovese vines and olive trees were added to the estate. Our passion is to become as good as we can working the lands that we are fortunate to have in and around Montalcino.





Who was the person from your family that first planted Sangiovese vines?

Valerio Ciacci, my grand-father, was the first to understand that Sangiovese vines were perfect for our property. Then the tradition was carried on by his son (our father) Hubert and now with the support of his sons Frederico and Dario.

When were the vines first planted?

The first vines were planted more or less 20 years ago, but our first Brunello di Montalcino was the 2000 vintage, as we waited for the sangiovese vines to mature to the point where we could start to make great Brunello wines.



Can you describe the land on which your vines are planted?

The vineyards are located both in the south part of the territory and in the north-west part, and both are
exposed toward the south which allow the vines to receive the best sunlight throughout the day. The southern vineyard is located at an altitude of about 250 meters above sea level, with a soil primarily porous and sandy, that produce a grape with a great presence of alcohol, and a full-bodied and powerful, voluminous wine.
The second vineyard is located 450 meters above sea level, where the soil is mainly clayey and calcareous. That gives us a wine well perfumed and aromatic and with low acidity. Thanks to the natural barriers and the south/southwestern exposure, the vines benefit from a climate particularly moderate. This gives us the
advantage of blending the grapes from the different vineyards, which enrich and improves the quality of the wine.

How many hectares are planted with Sangiovese Grosso grapes?

The total extension of the vineyard is 3.5 hectares


Who is involved in the vineyard from your family today?

The whole family is now working in the estate, my mother and father, Patrizia and Hubert, my brother Federico and myself.



What is your philosophy in making wines?

Our philosophy is built around taking great care of all the stages of the production, from the vineyard to the wine-making, with the best choice of the grapes during the harvest, and carefully attention to the wines during fermentation and aging process. We also believe that our wines should be accessible to the marketplace so we have a really competitive quality-price ratio which enables us to have our wines appreciated all over the wine world.




What sets your wines apart from others?

Wine for us is the most sensuous expression of the agricultural culture. Our mission to achieve the highest natural quality also involves a quest to find for the best possible means down to the tiniest detail. Villa i Cipressi wines should be characterised by elegance and finessse, underpinned by impressive structure and backbone.

You have received high ratings for your wines in recent years. Are there any that stand out as special?

Our improvement over the years has allowed us to receive very high ratings in the last few years. Our Brunello di Montalcino2004 zebras released for the first time in Australia this year is surely a  special wine, that can improve with aging. It recently received 95 points from Wine Spectator. We also have a very high opinion of the Brunello 2006 which is from a five star vintage year and was rated at 93 points.




Have your vintages changed over the years?

Our vines are becoming older, so that give to us a better quality on the vintage, in the meantime our method of selecting the best grapes is every year more meticolous. Our vintages are improving.

Can you tell us about the 2004 Villa i Cipressi Brunello Zebras?

Brunello di Montalcino 2004 Zebras is a special wine. We crafted this wine from a carefull selection of our best grapes and a 30-month aging in oak. It is a brilliant wine with a lively garnet color and with an intense, persistent, full and earthy aroma. Scents of brush lands, aromatic wood, a light trace of vanilla and a blend of fruit flavors can all be found in this wine. It is characterized by an elegant, harmonic and strong body. It is dry and its flavor presents a pronounced aromatic persistence. Thanks to its qualities, it can withstand lengthy ageing, improving with time. Its name is inspired by a painting by Waltraud Redl which also has become the decoration of our cellar.

We quite like the Rosso you produce and you seem to be receiving great comments on this wine?

Rosso di Montalcino is a younger wine that combines the special characteristics of vivacity and freshness with a superb structure. This very drinkable wine is advised to be enjoyed when it is young, although it can withstand lengthy ageing.

We think that with Rosso we can see how far an estate can arrive, with the great comments that we receive every day for our Rosso di Montalcino. We are very confident about the quality and finesse of our 2009 Rosso di Montalcino.

What are the first wines you will be bringing into Australia?

Through our sole agent, Italian Wine Importers, we will be bringing our wine from the 2004, 2006 and 2009 vintages. The Brunello di Montalcino from 2004 and 2006 and the Rosso di Montalcino from 2009.

When will we see you visit Australia?

We hope to visit this big country very soon.  Australia in our thoughts is one of our favorite countries.



Saturday, September 24, 2011

Great Vintages of Brunello di Montalcino 1997 v 2006

We recently tasted a 1997 Altesino Brunello and a 2006 Querce Bettina Brunello. Fascinating!

The Querce Bettina Brunello 2006 is rated amongst the top brunello wines in this five star vintage year. It recently received "tre bicchiere" (three glasses) which is the top rating of Gambero Rosso.  The 06 vintage is characterised by quality and elegance. It was a year which produced wonderful sangiovese grapes which allowed winemakers to make classic wines.



When first tasted the Querce Bettina 2006 Brunello envelops you with its luscious berry fruit flavours tinged with slight touches of licorice and leather. Its lovely rounded fruit is complimented by superbly balanced acidity and tanins. Good length that just kept you coming back for more. I think this wine is great drinking now and we will continue to see refinement occur in the bottle over the next five to ten years.



The 1997  vintage of Montalcino was a much hyped vintage and at the time regarded as one of the great Brunello vintages. It was recognised as a vintage where brunellos were characterised as having great structure, solid acidity and balance.

Traditionally brunellos were wines which could be put down and saved for decades before coming to maturity and I feel this is so true of the 1997 vintage. With Biondi Santi recently opening 100 +year old wines it is no wonder that sangiovese carries the label of longevity.







When we first tasted the Altesino Brunello 1997 it had only been opened for 30 minutes and when compared to the Querce 2006 it came across as timid and closed. The first tasting gave me the impression of a wine that was tight, closed and unbalanced with acidity overpowering.

Then (why was I surprised!!) over the next hour it opened up beautifully.

What a star this wine is. It was everything I would expect from this great vintage. And the colour was impeccable with the classic sangiovese ruby/red brick colour and still looking remarkably fresh.

Both wines will live for many more years. The 2006 in my opinion does not have the longevity of the 1997 with 2006 being at its peak over the next ten years and the 1997?...well who knows, but it will last and last for a long time and continue to surprise and delight










Friday, September 16, 2011

Where to find the Brunello di Montalcino and Rosso di Montalcino of Querce Bettina in Australia

We will keep you updated on where our fabulous Italian Wines are located in Australia. The list below comprises just some of the outlets that stock Querce Bettina in Sydney and Melbourne. We will keep this updated from time to time
Gossi Florentino, Bourke Street Melbourne
Kew Melbourne


Fratelli Paradiso

Potts Point Sydney


Paddington Sydney




Paddington Sydney


 



Surry Hills Sydney



Bottega del vino Potts Point Sydney


Vintage Blue Cellars, Kent Street Sydney



All of the above stock selections of our wines from the award winning wines

Ciao Ragazzi


Alan

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Tre Bicchieri for Querce Bettina Brunello di Montalcino 2006 from Gambero Rosso

Gambero Rosso is widely regarded as the authoritative listing and rating of Italian wines.




In 1987 the guide profiled 500 wineries and just 1,500 wines. Today there are five times as many cellars and almost 13 times as many wines. In 1987, there were 32 Three Glass awards, in 2011 there are about 400.
The three star award is the most prestigious in the Italian wine industry and is equivalent to an excellent rating with a score usually well above 90 points out of 100.



In 2011 only six regular Brunello di Montalcino wines were awarded three glasses.



As one of the most prominent wine areas in Italy the Brunello wines that wine the three glasses can be regarded as the best of the best




The 2012 three star ratings have now been determined and the Querce Bettina Brunello di Montalcino 2006 has been awarded three glasses by Gambero Rosso.

This is an outstanding achievement for Querce and the owners Roberto and Sandra.



Roberto said "this award justifies the great care we take in our vineyards, the low yields we develop, the hand picking and the careful and limited use of any additives in our wine making process"



Italian Wine Importers, the sole distributor of Querce in Australia, has the remaining stock of this Querce Bettina Brunello di Montalcino 2006 vintage and also the soon to be released "Riserva" from 2006. For order enquiries go to alan@italianwineimporters.com.au 




Wednesday, September 7, 2011

Brunello winemakers in Montalcino maintain tradition


The Assembly of the Consorzia del Vino Brunello di Montalcino voted on 7 September to maintain their long held rules and traditions by requiring all wines labelled "Brunello di Montalcino" and "Rosso di Montalcino" to be made from 100% Sangiovese grapes.



This is a great win for the traditionalists who believe the wines made under this strict DOCG classification must be protected and integrity maintained.



Votes are based on the number of hectares planted to vine and the number of bottles produced. So there was always a danger that the big winemakers such as Banfi may hold sway. But it wasn't to be.

Proposition 1 was: are you in favour of changing the ampelographic basis of Brunello di Montalcino?
662 NO
30 YES

Proposition 2: are you in favour of changing the ampelographic basis of Rosso di Montalcino?
540 NO
162 YES

Proposition 3: are you in favour of making other changes to the appellation rules? eg changing maximum yields
474 NO
228 YES

So in all an overwhelming result supporting the strict DOCG requirements of Brunello di Montalcino and Rosso di Montalcino.

The tradition is alive and well