MCF Rare Wine Ltd.


Livio Sassetti Brunello 2011

Today might be the day that officially gets me into full-on Fall mode.

It's a perfectly lovely 68 degrees here today, with the angle of the Sun having changed and the shadows fall a little in the earlier afternoon.  You body starts to pick up on the cues all around you and all of a sudden you start feeling that feeling...you start to crave different things.

A cigar and a Cognac on a brisk afternoon.

Pungent, warming foods like pasta and roast meat or root veggies.  

And, of course, hearty red wines with deep, earthy, Autumnal flavors.

You can expect to see plenty such wines on offer in the coming weeks.

(And be prepared, because there will be a lot of them.)

Today, I'll start with one of my favorite grapes for this time of year -- Sangiovese.

When it comes to Montalcino, there are four producers whose wines I drink/sell in every vintage -- Il Poggione, Lisini, La Torre and (today's producer) Livio Sassetti.

I say this because Sassetti (like the rest) produces a top-notch example of Brunello that communicates both the vintage (regardless of its relative strength) and the place beautifully.

Sassetti's traditional style has always spoken to me and in 2011, I really like what they've done.

Here you have a medium weight, highly aromatic and perfectly transparent bottle of classic Sangiovese.  It's elegant and light on its feet, but it's also packed with all of the signature aromas and flavors that you expect from old-fashioned Montalcino.  

Dark-red fruits.

Mineral, bloody earth.

Subtle wild herbs.

A clean, elegant and dignified finish.

The fine, fuzzy tannins will allow it to develop nicely over the medium term, but the transparent terroir on display already makes for a pretty delicious accompaniment to some rustic Fall fare right now.


THIS WINE IS IN STOCK.

Matt Franco

MCF Rare Wine, Ltd
237 West 13th Street
New York 10011
mcf@mcf-rarewine.com
212.255.8870
www.mcf-rarewine.com