2013 Mastrojanni Rosso di Montalcino DOC, Tuscany

Rosso di Montalcino can be delightful. In a way a good Rosso is more useful, and certainly much less expensive, than the much slower-maturing Brunello. The lighter wine can be released at barely a year old rather than the four long years of élevage required for a Brunello. A good Rosso di Montalcino, such as Mastrojanni’s, with its lively freshness underwritten by full ripeness, gives an inkling of the majesty of a fine Brunello but delivers it all wrapped up and ready to go.

The Mastrojanni 2013 with its suggestion of undergrowth and vegetation – a walk in the woods? - is delicate and gentle enough to drink without food already but is far from simple. It's a delightful expression of fully ripe Sangiovese. So how does a good Rosso di Montalcino differ from an all-Sangiovese Chianti Classico, for example? In general terms Chianti Classico is tighter, denser and more structured, partly because of higher elevation and cooler climate and partly because in the cellar most Chianti Classico producers are fashioning their wines for longer lifespans than is expected of the average Rosso di Montalcino.