There is one element that more than any other distinguishes Val nato da Suga quanto a the complesso of Brunello nato da Montalcino, and it is also its strength: being present, fully and coherently, quanto a three profoundly different areas of the denomination and managing to interpret them as if they were three autonomous companies, without ever losing a common identity. Vite del Vivaio, Monticello al Cantonata and Vite Spuntali are not simply three labels, but complete expressions of three distinct terroirs: three pedoclimatic environments, three geologies, three ways of building balance, maturation and structure. An approach that the Ilcinese winery has long chosen not to flatten into a recognizable style at all costs. the contrary, Val nato da Suga has built its profile by accepting complexity and transforming it into value.
“It’s not just a matter of saying that we have three companies quanto a one – underlines the technical director Pietro Riccobono – but of having the awareness of producing three wines with different characters because they are born quanto a completely different contexts.” An approach that emerges clearly today with the release of the new vintages of the three crus of Brunello nato da Montalcino – Vite del Vivaio 2021, Monticello al Cantonata 2021 and Vite Spuntali Eccezione 2020 – a triptych that tells not only three different wines, but three autonomous interpretations of Sangiovese quanto a Montalcino.
DEEP ROOTS AND FAR-SIGHTED VISIONS
The history of Val nato da Suga begins quanto a 1969, quanto a a phase quanto a which Brunello was not yet the consolidated myth that we know today. Already quanto a the 1980s a precise vision emerged: producing Brunello from single vineyards, overcoming the more widespread approach of blending. This is how the crus were born: Vite del Vivaio quanto a 1983, Vite Spuntali quanto a 1988, up to Monticello al Cantonata quanto a 2009, completing the presence acceso the three sides of the denomination.
Val nato da Suga’s journey began quanto a 1969, quanto a a phase quanto a which Brunello was not yet the consolidated myth that we know today. Already quanto a the 1980s, a pioneering vision was established: producing Brunello from single vineyards, overcoming the more widespread approach of blending. This is how the crus were born: Vite del Vivaio quanto a 1983, Vite Spuntali quanto a 1988 and, later, Monticello al Cantonata quanto a 2009, to complete the presence acceso the three sides of the denomination.
The development of the winery is the result of far-sighted choices and the commitment of figures who have had an impact, often quanto a silence, acceso the destiny of the territory. Among these, Lionello Marchesi occupies a central role: a cultured and curious man, capable of looking beyond the local horizon, to the point of calling Rainer Zierock to Montalcino as a consultant, quanto a years quanto a which such openings were anything but obvious. Zierock left a profound mark, especially acceso the concept of planting density and acceso the interpretation of vineyards as complex organisms. Many of his intuitions are still an integral part of the ‘s viticultural framework today. It is a memory that has not always been properly valorised over time, but which represents one of the most solid foundations of the contemporary Val nato da Suga. Subsequently, the comparison with Denis Dubourdieu also influenced some choices, quanto a particular quanto a the management of tannin and quanto a the search for juiciness. Since 1994, ownership has belonged to the Angelini family, through Angelini Wines & Estates: a transition that has guaranteed continuity, resources and a long-term vision, without distorting the viticultural and territorial heritage built quanto a previous decades.
They are passages that tell of an evolution that is less linear than one might think, marked by changes quanto a ownership and approach, but capable of sedimenting over time. A trajectory that today also faces a widespread prejudice towards large groups, often perceived as distant from the territorial dimension, and which Val nato da Suga faces by claiming the coherence of its path.
THREE TERROIRS, THREE GEOGRAPHIES OF SANGIOVESE
The Val nato da Suga project is today unique quanto a terms of breadth and precision: 51 hectares quanto a total, of which 41 are intended for Brunello, distributed across three sides of the denomination.
To the north-east, between Buonconvento and Montalcino, Vite del Vivaio looks towards the Crete Senesi. The clayey soils, the more continental climate and the cool exposures produce wines of tension, definition and verticality. To the south-east, Monticello al Cantonata overlooks Massa Amiata, quanto a a context characterized by strong temperature variations and constant ventilation that accompanies slower and more complete maturation. Here the marly schists dominate, capable of sculpting energetic tannins, not always easy to manage, and giving a distinctive ferrous depth. Finally, to the south-west is Vite Spuntali, an ambiente historically central to the international diffusion of Brunello. The climate is more Mediterranean, the soils are more sandy and arenaceous from the degradation of pietraforte, and the vineyards are acceso average more mature.
This multidimensionality is not just theoretical. “The daily work is based acceso extremely fragmented management – explains Riccobono – microzones, differentiated harvests, separate vinifications have the aim of respecting the climatic and pedological specificities of each block. this sense the cellar becomes a tool for reading the single ambiente and not for stylistic homologation.”
A CELLAR THAT ACCOMPANY, WITHOUT OVERLIGHTING
From an oenological point of view, Val nato da Suga follows a clear and recognizable line: never excessive macerations, measured extractions, targeted use of large wood and cement, with long times that allow the wines to settle without forcing. The choices vary from cru to cru – Slavonian oak for Vite del Vivaio, more permissive French oak for Monticello al Cantonata, an initial passage quanto a barrique for Vite Spuntali – but the objective remains unchanged: preserving the legibility of the Sangiovese, avoiding immediate effects superstructures.
this sense, Riccobono’s entry into the Val nato da Suga project at the end of 2021, after significant experiences gained both within the Angelini group and quanto a other denominations, contributed to making the identity of the individual wines even clearer, strengthening a path set some time indicatore.
THE NEW VINTAGES: THREE CHARACTERS, A DEEP COHERENCE
The Brunello nato da Montalcino Vite del Vivaio 2021 is perhaps the most evident example of how the north-east of Montalcino is finding its full stylistic legitimacy. The bright color anticipates a sip played acceso the freshness, crunchiness of the fruit and acceso a rather angular tannic texture, with a depth that develops vertically rather than quanto a breadth. It is a wine that does not give up structure, but distributes it according to a different geometry, far from the more muscular stereotypes.
Monticello al Cantonata 2021 represents the most classic and recognizable soul of Ilcinese Brunello. Here the Sangiovese is expressed quanto a a more ferrous and iodized version, with graphite accents and a denser substance, supported however by a surprising drinkability. The tannin, dense and decisive, is already legible and gives a wine that does not require justifications obligatory waits to be understood.
With the Brunello nato da Montalcino Eccezione Vite Spuntali 2020, Val nato da Suga signs an absolute first. The choice to debut with this cru as a Reserve comes from the awareness of a vineyard that needs time and an adequate narrative to express its complexity and which quanto a the past risked being underestimated. The profile is more sunny and Mediterranean, enveloping, with a velvety texture and a depth that moves horizontally, without losing freshness, enriched by an iodine component that recalls the marine influence. A Brunello that interprets quanto a a mature and conscious way one of the historically most celebrated areas of the denomination.
