Brunello di Montalcino 2016 – Cinelli Colombini

Casato Prime Donne, the first Italian winery staffed entirely by women has reached International success thanks to the quality of its Brunello. Fattoria del Colle is a treasure chest of memoirs where visitors can experience the history of the Tuscan countryside in the midst of uncontaminated and organically cultivated nature.

Donatella Cinelli Colombini left her family’s estate to start her own, made up of Casato Prime Donne in Montalcino and Fattoria del Colle in Trequanda. Together with the vineyards, and the farmhouses in need of repair Donatella received some Brunello wine, and so she needed a cellar master to rack, age and bottle it. She called the Enology school in Siena, asking for a good student to hire as her cellar master. They answered that they had none; cellar masters had to be booked, years in advance. When Donatella asked the same question, specifying however that she wanted a female cellar master, the answer changed. There were many women available, as no winery would employ them. Realising the great gap in opportunities, Donatella Cinelli Colombini developed her project finalised in reducing this discrimination and demonstrating that the production of fine wines does not depend on muscles but on the passion and the talent that both genders have in equal measure.

Brunello di Montalcino 2016

The 2016 Brunello live up to the intense hype.
These wines are superior to the 2015s, the product of an extremely hot year that was erratic and didn’t really live up to its own hype. The 2016s are even better than the highly acclaimed 2010s and are in line with classic vintages like 2004 and 2001; a dream year throughout the denomination.
It rained at the right times and had abundant sun and warm temperatures but no heat spikes during the growing season.
A cold winter that disinfected the vines and plenty of rain in January and February that replenished water reserves, crucial after the scorching 2015. A cool, rainy spring was a return to classic years.
By flowering in May, plants were in excellent health. July was warm and dry while August boasted marked day and night temperature ranges. Rain in September was compensated by good ventilation and marked diurnal temperature changes that kept grapes healthy.
Brunello di Montalcino 2016 combines fruit richness, tannic power, finesse and freshness. The best are radiant, delicious and full of nervous tension. They have the structure to age well for 20–30 years.