Il Macchione Vino Nobile di Montepulciano 2021

Originally from Trento up north in the Alto Adige, brothers, Simone and Leonardo Abram decided to make the move to Tuscany and set up camp in Montepulciano in 2005. Their winery and vineyards are found in the heart of the Caggiole region, regarded as one of the key growing areas within Montelpuciano and being close to the Umbrian border, this is the most easterly region within Tuscany. Here the boys concentrate on the local indigenous clone of Sangiovese called Prugnolo Gentile. The vineyards sit around 350m and sit on top of a hill with south-east exposure so they get continuous ventilation. Soils are made up of the classic profile for the region, mostly silty clay with remnants of river stones and rich with crustacean fossils.

Opposed to taking the often regular path of blending, both of their wines, the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and the Rosso di Montepulciano (and the occasional release of a Riserva on exceptional years) are made entirely from Prugnolo Gentile. Similar to many of their neighbours, they have a strong focus on natural and organic farming, but they don’t see the need to get certification as they simply believe this is the way they do things here and have done so in the region for centuries.

The wines from Il Macchione are centred around their flagship Vino Nobile, which sees an additional 12 months more time in oak than the mandatory 12 months, followed by 12 months in bottle totalling 3 years before it gets released to the market. The result is a full and powerful wine with densely packed fruit and aromas of spice, dark chocolate and generous but well integrated tannins. Fruit for select wines is vinified in a combination of cement, tonneaux and lager format oak and all wines are fermented using natural yeasts.