Carpineto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva 2016

Carpineto has fashioned the most complete and complex Vino Nobile to date in their truly noble 2016 Carpineto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva (90% Prugnolo Gentile, 10% Canaiolo Nero). Despite Vino Nobile’s penchant for aeration, this young Vino Nobile makes a grand entry from the moment it is poured. Savory notes of black cherry, blackberry, bay leaf, and thyme grace the nose and palate. In the mouth, this wine delivers an ever expanding array of pure berry fruit, forest woodland, and savory herbs that both broaden and deepen with each sip, making a seamless statement that is truly noble and distinctly Tuscan. Concentrated and richly flavored, yet endowed with polished, refined tannins, the 2016 Carpineto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva is a tour de force in winemaking, and we are hardly alone in our summation (95 Points – Wine Spectator). For optimal enjoyment, we strongly suggest affording this grand Riserva and all fine young Tuscan reds an hour or more of aeration to fully express themselves before serving at cool room temperature (58°-62° F). Anticipated maturity: 2021-2032. Enjoy!

The 2016 Carpineto Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva provides the ideal companion to traditional Tuscan fare and so much more. Florentine Steak, Tuscany’s classic Porterhouse style steak rubbed with garlic, olive oil and wild herbs, makes an outstanding companion to Carpineto’s elegant, richly flavored 2016 Vino Nobile Riserva. A marinated and grilled sirloin steak, served with a mushroom, chestnut, shallot, and green peppercorn sauce with sides of a warm goat cheese potato salad and fresh haricots verts makes another splendid pairing. Osso Buco is another perennial favorite. However, wild boar and pasta dishes served with wild boar ragu also make superlative accompaniments to this noble wine, as does a trio of starters consisting of a white bean paste, a red pepper hummus, and a black olive and sun dried tomato tapenade, all served with crostini and freshly baked focaccia. And certainly, savory bean and lentil dishes as well as rich creamy pastas provide tasty accompaniments to Carpineto’s exceptional 2016 Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Riserva. Buon Appetito!

Carpineto is the result of a vision to revolutionize Tuscan winemaking and to produce wines of international renown, a mission that consumers and critics alike have affirmed for more than five decades. Purchased from the Diocese of Florence in 1967 by Giovanni Carlo Sacchet and Antonio Mario Zaccheo in Greve at the heart of Chianti Classico, Carpineto shines as a paragon of excellence. Since its inception, Carpineto has spread its wings to nearby Montepulciano and Montalcino where they fashion exceptional award winning Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Brunello di Montalcino.

Fanatical in their love for the Tuscan soil and cutting edge technology, Sacchet and Zaccheo created what has become the benchmark for quality and consistency in Tuscany’s three most renowned DOCGs. The vast majority of Carpineto’s wines are red (95%) and more than half are aged for three years or more and are entitled to Riserva designation. Although enjoyable in their youth, Carpineto’s red wines are designed for long aging with up to 20 years or more for the estate’s Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Brunello di Montalcino Riservas. Always balanced and supple in texture, Carpineto’s Riservas are complex, full-bodied wines that offer savvy consumers some of the very best that Tuscany has to offer.

Even when legions of wine thirsty tourists descend upon the Tuscan hill town of Montepulciano, it manages to retain its charm and characteristic medieval feel. In fact, this bustling town is a strollers’ paradise, replete with flower bedecked alleyways and steep steps in place of streets. And thanks to a ban on vehicles in much of the old town, one comes to quickly understand how Montepulciano emerged a “pearl of the 16th century.” Set on a steep hill between the Val di Chiana and the Val d'Orcia, Montepulciano is the center of the thriving DOCG (Controlled and Guaranteed Denomination of Origin) of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, one of the greatest and oldest Italian wines.

The “noble wine” of Montepulciano has enjoyed its renowned reputation ever since the year 790. Even in the early medieval period, the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano was highly sought after, even outside of Montepulciano and the surrounding area. In 1549, Sante Lancerio, maître de chaîne to Pope Paul III, called the Nobile of Montepulciano the “Vino perfettissimo da Signori” or the Preferred Wine of the Nobility. It was, however, the doctor and poet Francesco Redi, who in the 17th century established the reputation of the Nobile of Montepulciano as “The King of all Wine.” The name “Nobile” dates from the era when higher quality wines were exclusively reserved for noble families.

Even today, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano is universally recognized as a special wine. Vino Nobile’s primary grape variety is the local Prugnolo Gentile, a unique clone of Tuscan Sangiovese that must constitute a minimum 70% of any wine that bears the title. Many point to Prugnolo Gentile as the determining factor in the quality quotient of Vino Nobile. And with the supreme polish and depth of flavor that one sees in the finest Vino Nobile, it would be hard to refute the claim. Since 1980, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano has enjoyed the distinction of DOCG status, one of the first wines in Italy to be so named.

In order to be called Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, the wine must be matured in wooden casks for at least two years, starting from the 1st of January following the harvest. After maturing for three years, Vino Nobile is entitled to be called “Riserva.” Prugnolo Gentile must always be the primary grape variety, but other traditional Tuscan varieties such as Malvasia Nero, Canaiolo Nero, Colorino, and Mammolo are also permitted. Small amounts of Merlot and Cabernet are now legal in Vino Nobile as well.