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Toscana · Subregion entry

Montalcino

Montalcino gives Sangiovese more sun and structure, turning Brunello into a darker, longer-lived version of Tuscany's sour-cherry grape.

Place
Montalcino · Toscana · Italy
Producers
22
Editorial basis
World of Wine subregion guide
Atlas locationMontalcino · Toscana43.07° N · 11.46° E
Appellations
Brunello di Montalcino · Rosso di Montalcino · Moscadello di Montalcino · Sant'Antimo

Elsewhere in Toscana

Continue through the region

  1. Bolgheri & Etruscan Coast18 producersBolgheri and the Etruscan Coast are Tuscany's maritime Cabernet country, where sea air and gravelly soils made the Super Tuscan style credible.
  2. Carmignano & Prato HillsNo producers listed yetCarmignano & Prato Hills sits within Toscana, Italy.
  3. Chianti Hills67 producersThe Chianti hills are Sangiovese's daily classroom: inland altitude keeps acidity high, so the wines stay cherry-bright and savoury rather than heavy.
  4. Elba IslandNo producers listed yetElba Island sits within Toscana, Italy.
  5. Lucca, Apuane & Northern Coast4 producersLucca, Apuane & Northern Coast sits within Toscana, Italy.
  6. Maremma Grosseto6 producersMaremma Grosseto sits within Toscana, Italy.
  7. Montepulciano & Valdichiana13 producersMontepulciano and Valdichiana sit further inland, where Sangiovese keeps its bite and often feels earthier and less polished than coastal Tuscany.
  8. San Gimignano & Sienese Hills2 producersSan Gimignano & Sienese Hills sits within Toscana, Italy.

Producer profiles

Producers in Montalcino

  • Antonio Mastrojanni Societa Agricola Societa SempliceA Brunello di Montalcino estate in Castelnuovo dell'Abate, farming 14.4 hectares of Sangiovese on lacustrine clay and sand soils since 1975, now owned by Francesco Illy of the coffee family and moving toward biodynamic viticulture.
  • ArgianoBrunello di Montalcino estate on a 350-metre calcareous marl plateau in the southwestern corner of Montalcino, farming 42 hectares of Sangiovese with a traditional large-cask ageing program rebuilt under new ownership from 2013.
  • Azienda Agricola Cordella MaddalenaMaddalena Cordella farms Sangiovese Grosso on the heavy sandy clays of Torrenieri, in the northeastern sector of Brunello di Montalcino, where Crete Senesi soils produce a rounder, riper house style than the limestone zones closer to town. The estate began bottling under its own label in 2006 and built its dedicated winery four years later.
  • Azienda Agricola MartocciaAzienda Agricola Martoccia brings Montalcino’s long-recognized Martoccia vineyard name to a focused collection of Rosso and Brunello wines.
  • Biondi-SantiThe Tuscany estate that named and bottled Brunello di Montalcino for the first time in 1888, farming 33 hectares northeast of Montalcino on five vineyard plots.
  • Castello BanfiMariani family estate in Montalcino, producing Brunello di Montalcino and the Merlot-Cabernet Super Tuscan Excelsus from a 2,830-hectare contiguous holding on the southwestern slopes of the hill.
  • Castello RomitorioA Brunello di Montalcino estate founded in 1984 by Transavanguardia painter Sandro Chia, who bought a ruined medieval castle on the northwestern Montalcino ridge and planted 100% Sangiovese. His son Filippo joined in 2005 and renewed the winemaking. Every bottle carries Sandro's own artwork.
  • Castello TricerchiCastello Tricerchi is a Montalcino estate with northern slopes, Sangiovese Grosso, castle cellars, and Brunello and Rosso di Montalcino.
  • Ciacci Piccolomini d'AragonaA Montalcino Brunello estate run by the Bianchini family, who inherited it from the last countess of the Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona line in 1984. More than 30 hectares of Sangiovese farmed organically in Castelnuovo d'Abate, with large Slavonian-oak botti as the cellar's primary ageing vessel.
  • Col d'OrciaCol d'Orcia is a 540-hectare estate at the southwestern edge of Brunello di Montalcino, farming organically since 2010 and aging its wines in large Slavonian and Allier oak casks.
  • Conti CostantiConti Costanti farms twelve hectares of galestro hillside above Montalcino and makes Brunello from a family whose Sangiovese was exhibited under that name in Siena in 1870. Andrea Costanti has run the estate since 1983, working with enologist Vittorio Fiore on a range that moves from Rosso through the barrel-selected Vermiglio to Brunello and a Riserva made only in strong vintages.
  • GiodoCarlo Ferrini's personal estate in Montalcino: six hectares, eight hand-selected Sangiovese clones, and a 2019 Brunello that garnered significant critical attention.
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  • La PalazzettaLa Palazzetta is a Fanti-family estate on the southeastern slope of Montalcino, farming about 20 organically certified hectares of Sangiovese on limestone-rich soil at 365 metres near the Abbey of Sant'Antimo. Their Brunello di Montalcino is made with indigenous yeasts, long maceration, and extended French oak ageing, with the Riserva stretching that oak contact to five years.
  • Le RagnaieMontalcino estate farming three geographically separate corners of the hill, bottling each parcel under its own label to show what the same Sangiovese says in different soils and elevations.
  • Pian delle Querci Societa AgricolaFamily estate in Montalcino making Brunello di Montalcino DOCG from clay-soil Sangiovese, fermented without added yeast in steel and aged three years in new large Slavonian oak.
  • Pieve Santa RestitutaThe Gaja family's Brunello di Montalcino estate, purchased in 1994 as their first move outside the Langhe in 135 years. Three wines from Sangiovese on south-facing slopes above Montalcino: a multi-vineyard Brunello and two single-parcel expressions, Rennina and Sugarille.
  • Podere BrizioPodere Brizio is a Montalcino estate focused on Sangiovese, with southwest-facing vineyards, olive groves and a soil-conscious approach.
  • San PoloBrunello estate on the warm southeastern face of Montalcino, farming galestro soils with organic practices and an underground cellar designed to cool by natural insulation.
  • Societa Agricola Podere le RipiMontalcino estate with biodynamic vineyards in Castelnuovo dell'Abate and Camigliano, making Brunello di Montalcino, Rosso di Montalcino and Sant'Antimo.
  • Tenuta Buon TempoOrganic Brunello di Montalcino estate at Castelnuovo dell'Abate, built from a 2012 purchase and a bare cellar; 14 hectares of Sangiovese Grosso aged three years in large Slavonian-oak casks.
  • Tenuta di ArgianoA founding member of the Consorzio del Brunello since 1967, Argiano farms 60 hectares of Sangiovese on the southwestern slope of Montalcino at 350 metres. Its 2018 Brunello was named Wine Spectator's Wine of the Year in 2023.
  • Tenute Silvio NardiTwo-estate Brunello producer on opposite slopes of the Montalcino hill, farming Sangiovese Grosso across 49 registered hectares and assembling its flagship from 20 separately vinified parcels. Four proprietary clones entered Italy's national register of varieties in 2019.

Keep following the thread

Where to go next

placeReturn to ToscanaSee how Montalcino fits within the wider Toscana region.mapSee Montalcino in the AtlasKeep its neighbouring areas and producers in view.producerMeet Antonio Mastrojanni Societa Agricola Societa SempliceAntonio Mastrojanni Societa Agricola Societa Semplice is one of the producers placed in Montalcino.