Castelgiocondo Brunello di Montalcino Riserva "Ripe al Convento" DOCG 2010
(Tuscany, Italy) - [JS 98] [WS 95] [VM 94] [WA 93+]

Notes from the Winemaker:

Unclouded and with a good consistency, Ripe al convento 2010 presents itself with a pleasing and intense red ruby colour with garnet hues. To the nose, the wine is complex and profound with an initially prevalent fruity presence of small black and red fruits such as plums, blackberries, and blackcurrant, which evolves into spiced vanilla notes and toasted scents of coffee, cocoa and tobacco. When tasted, the wine is warm, soft and balanced, and densely rich in tannins, which are well supported by the alcohol content and an acidity that is well balance by the other components. Tasted in December 2015.

Serving suggestions: Stews, slow-cooked meat dishes, and aged cheeses.

Description
The Ripe al Convento vineyard, lying at 350-450 metres’ elevation, yields a wine that is the fruit of painstaking quality selection, first in the vineyard and then on sorting tables in the cellar, where every berry is examined. This Brunello Riserva exhibits a remarkably distinctive personality and significant cellarability.

SOIL TYPE: Dark, schisty galestro soils, rich in clay, calcium, and other minerals; alkaline to sub-alkaline.

TECHNICAL INFORMATION
Variety: Sangiovese
Alcohol by volume: 15%
Maturation method: Large Slavonian oak ovals and French oak barrels
Length of maturation: From harvest through the 1 January of the 6th year, with a minimum of 2 years spent in oak and 6 months in the bottle

---

98 Points & #19 Top 100 Italian Wines of 2016 - James Suckling:
Wow. This shows the density and greatness of the 2010 vintage. Dense and so rich yet lively and agile. Super polished tannins and a persistent finish. Love the quality of the tannins. Drink or hold. Lovely potential for aging. Amazing Brunello." - (November 9, 2016)

95 Points - Wine Spectator Magazine:
"Tightly wound, with brisk acidity driving the flavors of cherry, plum, leather, iron, earth and eucalyptus. Hangs together beautifully, allowing vivid acidity to corral the endless finish. Best from 2019 through 2036. 800 cases made." - BS (Jun 30, 2016)

94 Points - Antonio Galloni:
"The 2010 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Ripe al Convento is a gorgeous wine built on texture and resonance, yet even with all of its depth, the 2010 retains a striking sense of transparency. Dark cherry, plum, mocha, lavender, mint and spices flesh out in a dramatic Brunello endowed with baritone intensity and pure power. The tannins need time to soften, but, even so, there is more than enough depth to provide balance. The Ripe al Convento is the wine that best reconciles the Frescobaldi family's search for textural richness with the inherent personality of their Montalcino sites. This is one of the most impressive Brunellos I have tasted from Castelgiocondo." - Antonio Galloni (February 2016)

93+ Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate:
"The 2010 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva offers hints of the thicker extraction and international style that brought so much success to the Frescobaldi wine dynasty over the years. More recently, the wine has been considerably reeled back in terms of exuberance and exaggerated intensity. Like many other Brunellos from the "international" side of the style spectrum, this new increasingly streamlined approach is a sign of the times. Castelgiocondo's Riserva offers a very generous bouquet with loads of ripe fruit and spice. In the mouth, it shows great focus and a bright vein of acidity that adds enormous vitality. " - Monica Larner (Mar 2016)