2023 Il Poggione Rosso di Montalcino, Tuscany

Tightly knit and focused, featuring dark cherries, fresh herbs and subtle oak spice. Medium-bodied with a linear profile and firm, yet finely integrated tannins. Long and slightly chewy finish. Drink or hold.

92 points James Suckling

Il Poggione is one of Montalcino’s great historic estates, founded by the Franceschi family in the late nineteenth century and still in family hands today. The property lies around Sant’Angelo in Colle in the southern part of the appellation, where vineyards sit at varying elevations. Long serving winemaker Fabrizio Bindocci, now working alongside his son Alessandro, has helped keep the house style firmly classical, with Sangiovese and the character of Montalcino doing the talking.

Rosso di Montalcino is 100% Sangiovese and gives us the younger, more carefree sibling to Brunello. It comes from the same Montalcino territory but spends less time ageing, preserving more of the grape’s juicy fruit and youthful energy. The 2023 has plenty of ripe cherry and fragrance, balanced by the acidity and savoury bite that make good Rosso such an enormously useful dinner wine.

Bright ruby red with Morello cherry, raspberry and red plum followed by violet and blood orange. Fennel seed, sage and anise add a distinctly Tuscan savouriness, with black tea and warm earth underneath. The palate is medium bodied and energetic, with juicy red fruit, lively acidity and fine, lightly dusty tannins. Cherry and orange peel return through the finish alongside herbs and earthy spice.

Pici with tomato, porcini and pecorino has all the right ingredients, while eggplant parmigiana, grilled pork with sage, white beans braised with tomato and rosemary or mushroom pizza with taleggio will keep the bottle moving. This is Rosso doing exactly what Rosso should do: making a bowl of pasta and a second glass seem like extremely sensible decisions.

Cellaring: Drink now to 2034.