Italy
Of the many wine producing regions of Italy, we concentrate principally on two - Tuscany and Piedmont - where arguably the finest wines are made. Tuscany is the home of Sangiovese - which finds its greatest expression in the wines of Montalcino - while Piedmont is the home of Nebbiolo - the grape variety of Barolo and Barbaresco. In addition, we have wines from Friuli in the far northeast, close to the border with Slovenia, from the Veneto (particularly famous for the sparkling wines made from Prosecco) and from Umbria, where quality can be very fine, while price remains remarkably reasonable.
Wine production in Italy has undergone an extraordinarily rapid period of change over the last 20 to 30 years. Gone is the obsession, born at least in part from the impoverishment of the post-War years, for producing the maximum possible volume from the vineyards, which resulted in the production of vast quantities of dilute, under-ripe and poorly made wines. The generation of the increasingly affluent decades of the 1970s and 1980s, which has now taken control of family vineyards, has very different ideas. The transparency of the global market, and the competition for the attention of wine drinkers has brought in its wake the realisation that wine, however cheap, will not sell if the quality is not there. Now we have a generation of Italian producers making wines of the highest quality at all levels of price.
Siro Pacenti
A 20 hectare estate of which 13 hectares are south of Montalcino, and 7 to the north, where the winery is to be found, a mile or so off the road to Buonconvento and Siena. Giancarlo Pacenti’s new winery is a truly a state of the art construction, allowing him the space and facilities to meet his self-imposed exacting standards. I was amused by his statement that the sorting table is always staffed by women – on the grounds that their work in picking out any grapes not in absolutely perfect condition is so much more precise and reliable. Giancarlo is fortunate to have a high proportion of old vines – 40-45 years – amongst his holdings, planted by his maternal grandfather, Alessandro Pieri; it is to these that he attributes the exceptional complexity of his wines. He may be right – but it takes a great wine maker to bring such potential to fruition in the winery.
Red
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2012 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva P S, Siro Pacenti Magnum x 12019-20321 Magnum£228.00£280.00
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2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva P S, Siro Pacenti x 32022-20353 Bottles£379.50£465.00
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2017 Brunello di Montalcino Vecchie Vigne, Siro Pacenti x 62022-20346 Bottles£371.50£465.00
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2018 Brunello di Montalcino Pelagrilli, Siro Pacenti x 62023-20326 Bottles£229.00£294.00
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2018 Brunello di Montalcino Vecchie Vigne, Siro Pacenti x 62023-20356 Bottles£391.50£489.00
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2020 Rosso di Montalcino, Siro Pacenti x 62022-20296 Bottles£126.50£171.00
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2021 Rosso di Montalcino, Siro Pacenti x 62023-20306 Bottles£144.00£192.00
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