Conti Costanti Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 2006 750ml

Wine Advocate #200 Apr 2012
The 2006 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva emerges from the glass with freshly cut flowers, sweet red berries, licorice and spices all wrapped around a sensual, elegant frame of notable class. Considerable aeration is needed to bring out the wine’s depth and textural richness. This is an excellent wine, but more often than not I am attracted more to the straight Brunello here, as is the case again in 2006. Costanti gave the 2006 Riserva 36 months in oak, 18 months in medium-sized barrels followed by 18 months in cask. Anticipated maturity: 2016-2026.

It was 1983 when a very young Andrea Costanti took over Colle a Matrichese, inheriting quite a large responsibility for one of the few distinguished labels of quality in Montalcino at the time.
The passing years have demonstrated an increasingly confident manifestation of total harmony among the characteristics of the land, the Brunello of these unique vineyards and Andrea Costanti's sensibility to wine and his encompassing idea of the experience and pleasure of wine.
In developing the aromatic variety of the wines as far as possible, he has aimed for an elegant and perfect bouquet. As a result, the vines have rewarded him with even richer aromas though grown at an altitude in excess of 400 meters with consequent extreme ranges in temperature.
This young wine-maker has aspired to produce long-lasting and complex wines which, by nature, need time to mature and are not easy to make.
Although he has a great respect for the Brunello tradition, he is continually looking to the future with his far-reaching innovations.
The age of the vines, their particular biotypes and the soil composition have also aided in rendering a rich and long-lasting wine.
The authenticity of these wines rises above the fleeting trends.

Meats, Beef and Venison