Brunello di Montalcino

100% Sangiovese. Fonterenza grows 4.2 contiguous hectares of hilly vineyards just southeast of the town of Montalcino. The crown jewel of their holdings is a 1.6-hectare parcel valled Vigna del Bosco, so named for the fact that the steep, south-facing, amphitheater-shaped vineyard is entirely surrounded by thick woods. The Padovanis planted Vigna del Bosco in 1999 on this special site featuring complex galestro soils that vary quite a bit from top to bottom of the hill. They harvest it by hand in multiple passes.
Like their vineyard work, Fonterenza's cellar work is mindful and meticulous. The bunches are destemmed by hand and fermented spontaneously in Slavonian oak vats with a maceration of 20 to 30 days (whether there are punchdowns or only a cappello sommerso varies with the vintage). Typically, the wine ages for the first 2 years in 50-hectoliter Slavonian oak botti, followed by 3 more years in successively smaller botti. The wine is bottled without filtration and aged further, in other words always well beyond the requirements of the Brunello DOCG. Unlike the majority of their peers, the Padovanis do not release their Brunello until they consider if ready to drink, so inevitably the current vintage in the market is "behind" most other Brunellos by at least a couple of years.