2017 Rodolfo Cosimi Brunello di Montalcino 'Il Poggiolo'

100% Sangiovese Grosso. Fermented in steel and aged for two years in large French oak barrels. 14% alcohol. Podere il Poggiolo is a small farm in the southwest of Montalcino, the heart of the oldest part of the appellation. The vineyards were first planted by Roberto Cosimi in 1971 at a time when there were just 25 producers of Brunello. His son Rodolfo (known as Rudy) took over the estate as a teenager when his father passed away. The soils here are pale clays, with stony marl and schist over limestone, generically known as ‘Galestro’. It is on the slope below the cellar, falling away with a southwest exposure. The warm 2017 vintage gave us a generous wine that is already in a great drinking window. Medium-full bodied, with classic notes of leather, earth, baslamic, blackberry, plum, tobacco. Medium plus acidity and tannins on the long, dry finish. Approachable now but can age further.