2017 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna del Fiore

Maturing mid ruby with orange tinges. Pretty, perfumed, deep nose with a hint of pine. Compact fruit with a big dose of acidity that just matches the fruit concentration and long coating tannins. Long and lingering and not ready by far. (WS)

The single-vineyard 2017 Brunello di Montalcino Vigna del Fiore is delicate and floral in nature, scents of rose and violet giving way to dried strawberries and hints of cedary spice. It washes across the palate with elegance, as silken textures carry red and hints of blue fruit across a core of saline-infused acidity. This tapers off structured and dry, yet still quite lifted, leaving hints of licorice to linger on. I worry about the longevity of the 2017 Vigna del Fiore; it will need a few years to soften but doesn’t come across as having the persistence of fruit to reward extended cellaring. That said, it’s a very pretty wine.

Vigna del Fiore is a stony vineyard in the southern reaches of Montalcino. Located in a tight valley surrounded by forest, it reaches almost 300 metres above sea level. Owner Stefano Cinelli Colombini only produced 4,000 bottles in 2017 so as not to compromise the quality of the estate’s ‘Blu’ label Brunello. It exhibits greater fruit depth than the latter as well as darker tones of black cherry and black currant. It's a bit dusty on the entry but ultimately polished, and the tannins remain supple and well-behaved. Well-proportioned in its full figure with enough grip for the next five years.