Conti Costanti Brunello di Montalcino Riserva DOCG 2016
(Tuscany, Italy) - [WE 100] [VM 98] [DM 98] [WS 97] [WA 95]

About the Winery:
The noble Costanti family goes all the way back to the fifteenth century. One of several famous counts, Tito Costanti was a lawyer and winemaker, and was one of the very first to use the name Brunello for the celebrated Montalcino red. At present, the sole living descendant of the Sienese family, Andrea Costanti, carries the torch, strengthening the family’s reputation for making top wines with great innovation. His aim has always been to create elegant, complex and long-lasting wines that bring out the best of the terroir. Andrea achieved this by relying on his own excellent instinct for wine, and an in-depth knowledge of the terrain’s geological components. From vineyards located near the town of Montalcino, about 310 and 440 meters (1,020-1,445 feet) above sea level above sea level with southwestern exposure and galestro soil. The location, microclimate, power and intensity of Montalcino are combined with the elegance of these elevated vineyards. Fermentation takes place on the skins in temperature-controlled, stainless steel tanks, lasting approximately two weeks. Andrea’s Brunello ages eighteen months in Slavonian oak barrels, eighteen months in French tonneaux and at least twelve months in bottle.

Tasting Notes:
Deep ruby with brilliant garnet reflections, the bouquet is rich, ample and intense with notes of brushwood, berry fruit, plums, violets, spices and vanilla confirmed on the palate; luxurious structure, layered flavors and great concentration and depth, good acidity and silky, smooth tannins. Powerful and elegant.

Food Pairing:
A wonderful accompaniment to red meat

Technical Data

Grape Varieties: 100% Sangiovese

Fermentation container: Stainless steel

Length of alcoholic fermentation: 14 days

Aging containers: Tonneaux; barrels

Container size: 900 L and

Type of oak: Allier and Slavonian

Aging before bottling: 36 months

Aging in bottle: 24 months

100 Points & Cellar Selection - Wine Enthusiast:
"This perfumed wine opens with layers of scents, including violet, woodland berries, new leather, forest floor and warm spices. Smooth and elegantly structured, the savory palate boasts juicy black-skinned berry, blood orange, licorice, tobacco and the barest hint of coffee bean alongside taut, fine-grained tannins. Bright acidity keeps it impeccably balanced. Drink 2026–2046." – Kerin O’Keefe (4/1/2022)

98 Points - Vinous Media:
"A deeply sensual bouquet of freshly sliced plums, crushed violets, mentholated herbs and Tuscan dust rises up from the 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva. This is deeply textural while also cool-toned and refined, with mineral-tinged red and black berries cascading across a core of brisk acidity. Tension builds throughout, as grippy tannins mount toward the close, nicely contrasted by a burst of sour citrus. There’s a crystalline structure to the 2016 that tempts the imagination as to what the future will bring, and it tapers off long, youthfully poised, yet also remarkably fresh. Time will only increase the depths of the 2016 Riserva, a wine that I seriously look forward to tasting again in five to ten years." – Eric Guido (Dec 2021)

98 Points - Decanter Magazine:
"Andrea Costanti believes resolutely that 2016 was a year to make a Riserva. His is confidently extracted by a skilled hand and demonstrates the formidable structure, profundity and length to ride out well over a couple of decades. Even on the nose you sense the depth as coffee, leather, wet soil and tobacco intertwine. Filling every corner of the mouth, it stretches out with a tactile chalkiness. Dark earthy nuances are brightened by blood orange and red plum. That pleasant bitter citrus peel echoes on the finish. This is commanding rather than seductive at the moment. Harvested on 1 Oct, there were 8,000 bottles produced – compared to 20,000 for Costanti’s annata bottling." – Michaela Morris (Nov 2021)

97 Points - Wine Spectator:
"Packed with plum, black cherry and blackberry flavors, this solid red is a bit closed today, despite its freshness. Floral, earth, wild herb and mineral accents chime in as this follows through on the resonant finish. All the components are in the right place. Best from 2025 through 2043. 1,000 cases made, 170 cases imported." – BS (web only 2022)

95 Points - Robert Parker's Wine Advocate:
"The 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva is darkly saturated and quite rich; however, this classic vintage also delivers an enhanced level of sharpness and focus too. Dark cherry, plum and other black or purple fruits cede to pretty acidic freshness and a sense of tight buoyancy and vitality, which are among the best qualities of this vintage." – Monica Larner (Feb 2022)