Brunello di Montalcino All-Stars Collection

Brunello di Montalcino is one of the great wines of Italy, and indeed the world. Grown on the slopes surrounding the hill-top town of Montalcino, the name Brunello roughly translates as "little brown one," a deferential nickname for a local clone of Sangiovese that produced superior quality wine. In their book "The Sommeliers Atlas of Taste", famed Sommelier Rajat Parr and wine writer Jordan Mckay say of Montalcino, "with great viticulture and classic vinification, Sangiovese here can make one of the most compelling wines on earth." The first wine labeled "Brunello" was Clemente Biondi-Santi's 1865 vintage, but records indicate monks may have begun isolating the clone centuries earlier. Despite its centuries-long history, Brunello di Montalcino began its rise to prestige in earnest only in the 1960's. Before the world discovered the wine in the 1960's, there were only 11 producers farming just 157 acres of Brunello. Today there are over 250 producers farming 2,000 acres of Brunello vineyards. Even with this growth, the plantings of Brunello di Montalcino are still only 1/7* of Chianti Classico. This comparatively small production volume and the fact that the wines are required to age a minimum of five years before release (6 years for riservas) combine to make the Brunello di Montalcino some of the most sought-after Italian wines in the global market. Thanks to a series of extraordinary vintages and demand for Tuscan wines, Brunello di Montalcino has seen tremendous growth in recent years. Over the past three years, the Liv-Ex Italy 100 index, which tracks Italy's top wines, was up +31.7%. While impressive, over the same period, the wines of Tuscany were up +35.6%. Interest in Tuscan wines has been fueled by the one-two punch of Super Tuscan and Brunello wines. For years the top wines of Tuscany have offered value as alternative investments to Burgundy and Bordeaux. However, as popularity has grown and prices have risen, the top Super Tuscans have begun to offer less value as investments, and investors have increasingly turned their attention. With its strict aging requirements and requirement to contain 100% Sangiovese, Brunello di Montalcino offers Investors wines produced in smaller volumes with a better sense of place and terroir, all of which are increasingly valued by collectors. Vintage quality has also been a crucial factor driving demand for Tuscan wines over the past ten years. Following the 2000's which saw a series of very good vintages, the 2010s have seen three spectacular vintages (2013, 2015, 2016), all of which are featured in this collection. These stellar vintages produced wines that achieved optimal ripeness while also retaining freshness and balance. The scores of the wines from these years reflect this optimal balance, with five of the eight wines that have been scored in our collection receiving 99 points or better and three of those receiving 100-point scores. Featuring the top producers in Montalcino, this collection offers the opportunity to invest in the absolute pinnacle of Brunello di Montalcino's wines and the ability to further diversify your wine portfolio with shares from a region experiencing increasing demand and growth.