Lost in Montalcino

We decided to take a day trip from our villa in Umbria to Montalcino, home of Brunello.  I was very excited about this trip, mainly because I knew it would be as beautiful as the wine would be fantastic.  I was also hoping to taste a few Brunellos that I hadn't tried before.

After enjoying a long lunch and wine tasting, we began to make plans to visit a vineyard.  We quickly realized that most required advanced reservations, including a few that I was very excited about visiting.  It was looking like the only option was going to the massed produced, American owned Banfi vineyards.  Gah.  Oh well, would be fun anyway.

As we drove out of town, we quickly move from paved roads to twisting, winding dirt roads surrounded by lush vineyards.  We were following Cousin Michael, who somehow beat us from Umbria to Montalcino despite leaving well later than us.  So he had earned the navigation stripes (not a hard task with our crew, me being the absolute worst) and he was leading us with a vineyard map in hand.  But after a while of dirt-filled, I-can-barely-see-the-road-in-front-of-me driving, we stopped at a random house to regroup and look at the map. 

We were parked in the driveway of the house featured to the right, wondering where to go next.  Out of the house comes a young woman and an older man.  My NYC instincts sent me running back to my car, but the woman spoke English and began speaking with Cousin Michael. She was savvy enough to understand that we were clueless tourists looking for vino and said they had a winery and could taste some of their wines.  Michael turns around for approval and we give him a big thumbs up.   At this point, we don't even know the name of the winery we are visiting.  I personally found this thrilling but I had rather low expectations. I rarely have good luck in these types of situations.

We drive a bit further down to their winery.  When we get there, we realize the English speaking girl is the daughter of the family.  We are joined by her mother, who doesn't speak English but is very accommodating and looking to get us some glasses.  She clearly had been out in the vineyards most of the day.  We begin to hear about their winery as we walk back to the barrels in which they were aging their wines. 

They were a family producer of Brunello and had opened the facility we were in only a few years ago.  Angelo Sassetti, her father, was the winemaker and the namesake of the wines they produced.  His father had been making wine from the same estate, but you could tell that this new winery was a big deal for the family.  It was modest but modern and well kept.  As we began to taste the wine from the barrels, Angelo joined us. 

This is a corny thing to say, but all of us agreed Angelo was adorable.  You can't tell from the picture at the right, but he has the biggest cheeks, almost like a child.  Yet he had clearly been working in the vineyard all day, day after day, and his work clothes were filled with dust and his cheeks were burnt red with sunburn.  By simply looking at him, I could see the amount of hard work he and his family put into their craft.  Funny how I can be inspired by someone without even speaking the same language.

We tasted their Brunellos from the barrel while Angelo's daughter translated back and forth between our group and Angelo.  He explained to us how bad the 2002 vintage was for him and all of Montalcino and how he couldn't make wines for that year.  We couldn't help but think how such a  bad year can heavily impact a small, family run vineyard like theirs.  Angelo explained they would release their earlier vintages more strategically to make up for the difference, but even without speaking English, you could read the disappointment on his face.

We tasted every single wine they seemed to have in the winery.  The best wine we tasted was the Angelo Sassetti 2000 Brunello di Montalcino, which was only selling for 16 Euros.   This brunello wasn't a classic brunello to me.  It was not a huge, tannic wine that needed to age for the rest of my lifetime.  It was fruity and lush, yet it had nice firm tannins, nice oakiness and a long finish.  We bought a lot of it to drink during our stay at the villa.  I recommend it to you, biased by the welcoming, charming and personal experience the Sassetti family provided for us. 

In trying to track down more information and a link where you can buy a bottle here in the U.S., I found out here (scroll down) that Angelo and his brother seemed to have a difference in wine making styles.  Apparently his brother produces another Sassetti wine from their Pertimali estate in a more traditional Brunello style.

Read more about Angelo Sassetti here.  And if you are interesting in buying a few bottles, I tracked down the wines at Mario Batali owned Italian Wine Merchants. 

Comments

[Andy Bredemeyer]

I am visiting Chianti and Montalcino in particular in a couple of weeks. There are many, many vineyards...which were the ones you had hoped to visit, Joe? I'd love to know. Thanks.

[jackee]

Trip at Montalcino and visiting vineyard. Watch to make and taste different type of wines what an exciting trip I wish also go to some vineyard.

[laptop battery]

the most convenient and cheap replacement battery online shop in uk. We specialize in http://www.batteryfast.com laptop batteries,laptop AC adapters. All of batteries are brand new, with the excellent service from our customer service team, you can feel free to purchase on laptop battery!

[Bast]

Hello. Lack of money is no obstacle. Lack of an idea is an obstacle. Help me! Need information about: Anti asthma. I found only this - rhinocort use. Anti allergic agents agents that are used to treat allergic reactions. Freddy would get sick, despite nightly doses of singulair, an anti allergy medication, and frequent visits to the pulmonologist. Thank :eek: Bast from Zambia.

[Penis Enlargement]

The completely penis enlargement pills, devices, patches and exercises review to get better penis size. Read more info at http://www.penis-enlargement-online.org

[PetFirst Insurance Review]

Great post. I didn't make it to Montalcino this trip, but I hope to when we return next year

[Side effects of steroids]

Hope that you gained there some more cooking experience.

[kamagra]

The sun is very important for our planet but we have to be careful the the burns that the sun can produce.

[Losing Pregnancy Weight]

Oh I wish I could have been there!

[kamagra]

From the pictures it seems to be quite interesting.I love to drink wine.I wish i could be with you people.