Wine Advisor
Salvioni, Cerbaiola Brunello di Montalcino 2013
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: Ian d'Agata
Luminous full red. The lively, perfumed nose combines red cherry, blueberry, minerals and flinty aromas. Rich and densely packed, showing captivating peppery lift to the very ripe red and blue fruit flavors. I distinctly remember just how deceptively accessible this was when I tasted it with Alessia Salvioni in her small cellar in downtown Montalcino back in February 2017; it has continued to develop nicely since then and really showcases the depth, solid structure and length to support a long, graceful evolution in bottle. Knockout Brunello from one of the quality leaders of Montalcino (and Italy, for that matter).
Reviewed by: Monica Larner
Tasted from barrel, the 2013 Brunello di Montalcino La Cerbaiola is a fine and delicate expression. The bouquet opens gracefully to show pressed violets, blanched almond, wild spice and crisp forest berry. Like most of Salvioni's wines, this newest release is all about those tiny details. All those miniature components come together to build volume and intensity as the wine settles firmly over the palate. This vintage is slightly more streamlined and thin, yet the polished intensity of the mouthfeel is satisfying and long regardless.
Reviewed by: Monica Larner
Tasted from barrel, the 2013 Brunello di Montalcino La Cerbaiola is a fine and delicate expression. The bouquet opens gracefully to show pressed violets, blanched almond, wild spice and crisp forest berry. Like most of Salvioni's wines, this newest release is all about those tiny details. All those miniature components come together to build volume and intensity as the wine settles firmly over the palate. This vintage is slightly more streamlined and thin, yet the polished intensity of the mouthfeel is satisfying and long regardless.
About the Producer
Surrounded by woodland, the 20 hectares of La Cerbaiola look out over the Val d’Orcia from an altitude of 420 metres, opening up like a gently sloping plateau four kilometres to the southeast of Montalcino. The air is clear, a slight breeze rustles the leaves, and on the hillside opposite the outlines of Pienza, San Quirico and Ripa d’Orcia are clearly visible. There are three small vineyards for a total of 4 hectares, each with its own characteristics: soils that vary from chalky schist to stony marl; and subtle differences of micro-climate that influence the ripening of the grapes. All the work in the vineyard is carried out by hand, with hard pruning to obtain low yields of fruit and careful selection during the manual harvest. Production is deliberately limited, to obtain the very best from a unique terroir: 10,000 bottles a year when only Brunello is made; and 15,000 for the years in which there is also some Rosso di Montalcino.
