38 WINE SPECTATOR • MAY 31, 2020DAVIDYELLENBRUCE SANDERSON
I
n 2017, when French luxury
firm EPI bought majority own-
ership of Montalcino’s iconic
brand Biondi-Santi and the
historic Il Greppo estate
(where Brunello di Montalcino was
created), the deal attracted a lot of at-
tention from the press and local com-
munity. However, the denomination’s
flagship property got a much-needed
injection of capital.
After the initial transition—which
retained Jacopo Biondi Santi and his
son Tancredi—Giampiero Bertolini,
a 16-year veteran of Marchesi Fresco-
baldi, was hired as CEO. In May 2019,
EPI bought the remaining Biondi
Santi family’s shares, retaining Tan-
credi as brand ambassador and part of
the technical team blending the wines.
“We were ... very clear that we do
not do revolution, but only evolution,
and the reaction has been positive,”
stated Bertolini.
The investment has focused on pro-
duction, specifically, replanting vine-
yards, acquiring an additional 17 acres
of vines and retooling the cellar to al-
low separate vinification and aging for smaller parcels. At the
same time, Bertolini’s goal is to respect the style and tradition
of seven generations of the Biondi Santi family.
The original 62 acres of vines lie in four different parts of the
155-acre property: Piavecchia, Scarnacuoia, Pieri and Greppo. A
replanting program started in 2017, and in July 2019, Biondi-Santi
hired noted vineyard consultant Pedro Parra to analyze 33 differ-
ent parcels. “We knew some vineyards were better than others,
but now we found differences within vineyards,” said Bertolini.
The identification of these different parcels will give Bertolini
and his team, including technical director Federico Radi, more
control over the selection for the winery’s Rosso di Montalcino,
Brunello di Montalcino annata and riserva.
The late Franco Biondi Santi made all his wines in the same
way, differentiating them based on the age of the vines: The
Sangiovese for the riserva came from vines 25 years or older;
the vines for the annata were 10- to 25-years old; and the Rosso
came from the youngest vines. He liked to harvest early, preserv-
ing Sangiovese’s bracing acidity to promote longevity in the
riservas. There was also a selection process in the cellar.
Now, the wines will be informed by vineyard selection. Allthe vineyards’ rights are designated for
Brunello, however the Rosso will be
made from plots that deliver a fruitier
wine that’s enjoyable early; grapes for
the riserva will come from plots supply-
ing intensity, structure and longevity.
For the 2017 harvest, an optical
sorter was introduced to eliminate
unripe berries. The selection of fruit
consists of two steps in the vineyard
followed by three more steps in the
cellar—one sorting by hand and two
by machine.
To vinify the parcels separately,
Biondi-Santi has new Slavonian oak
vats of 30 and 36 hectoliters, stainless-
steel tanks of 35 and 45hl, and con-
crete vats in different shapes and sizes
(6, 16 and 37hl). There are also new
casks for aging the wines, ranging from
1-hl to 20- and 30-hl Slavonian oak.
On my visit to the estate last fall,
we tasted wines from both the new
team and Franco. The current release
Rosso di Montalcino 2016 revealed
aromas of cherry and strawberry, with
hints of tobacco, very pure, balanced
and fruity, with fine length. “The ’16
Rosso shows what a little more ripeness can give to the wine, a
little more roundness, fruit and drinkability,” said Tancredi.
The Brunello Riserva 2015, bottled this January, was the final
blend from concrete vat. It will spend another 30 months in bot-
tle before release. It had a complex nose of ripe cherry, currant,
tobacco and iron. Intense and full of sweet fruit, it maintained a
taut, fresh profile, with a fruit, spice and tobacco finish. Biondi
Santi noted that the entire production from 2015 could have
been riserva: “We were playing with incredible quality in barrel.”
The 2012 Riserva will be released this year. It’s the last one
made by Franco. Its aromas are more austere, displaying woody,
tobacco and mineral notes, with a hint of dried fruit. Long, firm
and energetic, it’s leaner than the ’15, with a vibrant structure.
We also tasted the superb 2010, along with the 1998, 1983 and
1975 riservas from Biondi-Santi’s library. At the tasting, Bertolini
said, “This is what we want to preserve, the DNA of the wines.”
So far, the wines under the new ownership are impressive. Yet
given the longevity of Biondi-Santi’s riservas, it may take years to
see if this DNA remains intact. Nonetheless, Montalcino’s iconic
estate has the resources to write its next chapter.
Senior editor Bruce Sanderson has been with Wine Spectator since 1993.Evolution, Not Revolution
New leadership at Brunello’s
Biondi-Santi is investing in
the future while respecting
the iconic estate’s past.
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