An organic Rosso di Montalcino, fermented spontaneously and macerated for 30 days on the skins in concrete tanks, after which the wine is pressed into Slavonian 2500-liter botti casks to age for 24 months. 14% alcohol.
Moderately translucent pomegranate red color with a developed figgy hue. Vibrant, sunny and slightly evolved nose with aromas of wizened cherries, some sweet figgy fruit, a little bit of lifted VA, light raisiny tones, a hint of leather and a touch of bloody meat. The wine is ripe and very juicy on the palate with a medium-to-moderately full body and pretty intense flavors of sour cherry bitterness, some tart lingonberries, a little bit of ripe cranberry, light ferrous notes of blood, a hint of volatile lift and a touch of brambly raspberry. The streak of sour cherry bitterness seems to grow towards the finish, while the high alcohol lends a little bit of warmth to the mouthfeel. The overall feel is quite tough and tightly-knit with the high acidity and moderately grippy medium tannins. The finish is noticeably bitter, somewhat grippy and quite lengthy with intense flavors of sour cherries, tart lingonberries, some leathery notes, a little bit of dusty earth, light crunchy cranberry tones, a ferrous hint of blood and a touch of balsamic VA.
A nice and sophisticated Rosso di Montalcino with a dead-serious, structure-driven overall feel. There's some sense of evolution here, as the fruit flavors are starting to show some raisiny tertiary notes, but structurally the wine is still very much a mere baby as the tannins are still very much unresolved and the taste is pretty much dominated by a quite prominent streak of sour cherry bitterness, which is accentuated by the high acidity. This is quite enjoyable stuff, if you like your Sangiovese very tough, angular and old-school in style. However, I wouldn't call this particularly approachable or drinkable - at least not yet. As a whole, the wine is pretty similar to a classic, traditionalist Chianti Classico with some age. Most likely the wine will continue to improve for some years and keep for many years longer. Good stuff.
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A good but not great wine - very tight and linear with very little fruit and no secondary or tertiary flavors to add interest. What you have at this stage is a bit of dark cherry fruit with high acidity and fairly astringent tannins. Maybe it is in a dumb phase and will wake up with age but it isn’t very rewarding right now.
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A wow! For my taste, quite the pleasing (and highly affordable) bottle. Dark ruby, full, savory aromas, rounded red fruit backed by a touch of acerbic citrus peel, tannins just right for me. Based on my previous, if somewhat limited, experience with this producer, Le Ragnaie will join my short list of wines to buy on name alone--no need to wait for critics to weigh in.
Herbaceous thyme and potpourri aromas lead to red currant and roasted tomato flavors. Great acidity/fruit balance, medium-bodied and lingering notes of leather on the finish.
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This should be a very nice wine in a few years but its drinking well today. Pnp, medium + palate, dark red fruit with a little spicebox. Gained weight and complexity with airtime.
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Always a pleasure to pour a wine that has some transparency and life to it, so this clear red had great visual appeal in the glass. Mostly savory nose. Fairly unimpressive flavors at first, with flavor and texture developing nicely in the glass, so give this one a bit of air first to enjoy fully.
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Clean, developing nose. Needed an hour or so to really open up. Aromas of dark cherry, pine nuts, gravel dust, worn leather, bitter orange, decaying rose petal, rose hips, and spice box. Hints of oak, espresso and acetone. Savory and rustic nose.
Bone dry with a medium acidity, medium(+) tannin and body. More open on the palate with a medium(+) intensity, Dark cherry, rose hip and gravel dust are coming through. The finish is medium(+) and the 14% abv is in really great balance.
First time for me tasting a wine from Le Ragnaie and it really lived up to my expectations. This Rosso is still very young and would benefit a lot from more aging. I'd say this delivers quality way above it's appellation and price tag €18 and gives more Brunello-typicity than many other Brunelli for around €30.
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A week in Tuscany (and Lots of wines); 10/19/2015-10/21/2015 (Tuscany, Italy): Dusty nose with slight cherries and a bit of herbal notes. On the palate there is a nice depth here not found in many RdM. Sweet cherry fruit with some earthy layering. Light tannins. Great balance and freshness. Nice finish. Drinking well now but no hurry.
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A very impressive and succulent Rosso. The fruit is sweet and mineral, showing ripe red fruit core enveloped in complex sap-like wrapper. The nuances flavors swirl on the palate, creating impression of layers of evolving flavors. The wine is lively, energetic and well extracted; drinks well now, though some tannins come through in the finish.
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Very nice RDM. I recently had several 2012s and this was a tad better. More body and better integrated tannins. Would love to try this again in another year or two. Solid effort.
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The ’12 Rosso took a turn to the exotic with citrus-tinged fruit laced with lifting herbal notes and dry spices. It was soft yet juicy on the palate with ripe red fruits accentuated by vibrant acidity, yet it firmed up nicely into the finish, as this formidable Rosso’s youthful tannin clenched the senses. A standout from the 2012s tasted so far; it will be interesting to follow over the next few years.
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Le Ragnaie visit (Le Ragnaie, Montalcino): transparent dark red-purple, ripe dark fruit aroma & flavours, round tannins, high acidity, complex, tannic medium finish.
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10/7/2020 - BillBell73 wrote:
A bit bretty, tight, and clipped on the finish. This vintage never really resonated for me, perhaps I consumed them too soon.
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9/21/2020 - forceberry wrote: 90 Points
An organic Rosso di Montalcino, fermented spontaneously and macerated for 30 days on the skins in concrete tanks, after which the wine is pressed into Slavonian 2500-liter botti casks to age for 24 months. 14% alcohol.
Moderately translucent pomegranate red color with a developed figgy hue. Vibrant, sunny and slightly evolved nose with aromas of wizened cherries, some sweet figgy fruit, a little bit of lifted VA, light raisiny tones, a hint of leather and a touch of bloody meat. The wine is ripe and very juicy on the palate with a medium-to-moderately full body and pretty intense flavors of sour cherry bitterness, some tart lingonberries, a little bit of ripe cranberry, light ferrous notes of blood, a hint of volatile lift and a touch of brambly raspberry. The streak of sour cherry bitterness seems to grow towards the finish, while the high alcohol lends a little bit of warmth to the mouthfeel. The overall feel is quite tough and tightly-knit with the high acidity and moderately grippy medium tannins. The finish is noticeably bitter, somewhat grippy and quite lengthy with intense flavors of sour cherries, tart lingonberries, some leathery notes, a little bit of dusty earth, light crunchy cranberry tones, a ferrous hint of blood and a touch of balsamic VA.
A nice and sophisticated Rosso di Montalcino with a dead-serious, structure-driven overall feel. There's some sense of evolution here, as the fruit flavors are starting to show some raisiny tertiary notes, but structurally the wine is still very much a mere baby as the tannins are still very much unresolved and the taste is pretty much dominated by a quite prominent streak of sour cherry bitterness, which is accentuated by the high acidity. This is quite enjoyable stuff, if you like your Sangiovese very tough, angular and old-school in style. However, I wouldn't call this particularly approachable or drinkable - at least not yet. As a whole, the wine is pretty similar to a classic, traditionalist Chianti Classico with some age. Most likely the wine will continue to improve for some years and keep for many years longer. Good stuff.
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1/17/2019 - Italiana Likes this wine:
Clear ruby. Fairly well balanced, with some edge to the acidity. Nice sangiovese.
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12/23/2018 - BillBell73 Likes this wine:
A good but not great wine - very tight and linear with very little fruit and no secondary or tertiary flavors to add interest. What you have at this stage is a bit of dark cherry fruit with high acidity and fairly astringent tannins. Maybe it is in a dumb phase and will wake up with age but it isn’t very rewarding right now.
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10/29/2017 - Italiana Likes this wine:
A wow! For my taste, quite the pleasing (and highly affordable) bottle. Dark ruby, full, savory aromas, rounded red fruit backed by a touch of acerbic citrus peel, tannins just right for me. Based on my previous, if somewhat limited, experience with this producer, Le Ragnaie will join my short list of wines to buy on name alone--no need to wait for critics to weigh in.
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9/1/2017 - winedr wrote: 93 Points
Even better than the last time. Very aromatic and smooth tannins. Excellent. Rivals many brunellos.
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8/28/2017 - iDrum4Wine Likes this wine: 92 Points
Herbaceous thyme and potpourri aromas lead to red currant and roasted tomato flavors. Great acidity/fruit balance, medium-bodied and lingering notes of leather on the finish.
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3/4/2017 - IndyTom Likes this wine: 92 Points
Very big for a Rosso di Montalcino. Big round mouth feel with sweet cherry fruit. Soft tannin.
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3/3/2016 - rebs1 wrote: 91 Points
This should be a very nice wine in a few years but its drinking well today. Pnp, medium + palate, dark red fruit with a little spicebox. Gained weight and complexity with airtime.
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1/10/2016 - Italiana Likes this wine:
Always a pleasure to pour a wine that has some transparency and life to it, so this clear red had great visual appeal in the glass. Mostly savory nose. Fairly unimpressive flavors at first, with flavor and texture developing nicely in the glass, so give this one a bit of air first to enjoy fully.
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11/26/2015 - karl.1480 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Clear, medium intensity, ruby color.
Clean, developing nose. Needed an hour or so to really open up. Aromas of dark cherry, pine nuts, gravel dust, worn leather, bitter orange, decaying rose petal, rose hips, and spice box. Hints of oak, espresso and acetone. Savory and rustic nose.
Bone dry with a medium acidity, medium(+) tannin and body. More open on the palate with a medium(+) intensity, Dark cherry, rose hip and gravel dust are coming through. The finish is medium(+) and the 14% abv is in really great balance.
First time for me tasting a wine from Le Ragnaie and it really lived up to my expectations. This Rosso is still very young and would benefit a lot from more aging. I'd say this delivers quality way above it's appellation and price tag €18 and gives more Brunello-typicity than many other Brunelli for around €30.
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10/20/2015 - Loren Sonkin wrote: 91 Points
A week in Tuscany (and Lots of wines); 10/19/2015-10/21/2015 (Tuscany, Italy): Dusty nose with slight cherries and a bit of herbal notes. On the palate there is a nice depth here not found in many RdM. Sweet cherry fruit with some earthy layering. Light tannins. Great balance and freshness. Nice finish. Drinking well now but no hurry.
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8/5/2015 - jnewman77 wrote:
Similar to prior, a good solid Rosso that is very drinkable right now.
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7/20/2015 - jnewman77 wrote:
Very solid Rosso with nice red berry fruit, licorice, spice, and rose petal. Good energy and flavor on the palate with nice balance.
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5/26/2015 - swapdoc Likes this wine:
A very impressive and succulent Rosso. The fruit is sweet and mineral, showing ripe red fruit core enveloped in complex sap-like wrapper. The nuances flavors swirl on the palate, creating impression of layers of evolving flavors. The wine is lively, energetic and well extracted; drinks well now, though some tannins come through in the finish.
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4/19/2015 - mcromain1021 wrote: 91 Points
Very nice RDM. I recently had several 2012s and this was a tad better. More body and better integrated tannins. Would love to try this again in another year or two. Solid effort.
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2/1/2015 - Eric Guido Likes this wine: 92 Points
The ’12 Rosso took a turn to the exotic with citrus-tinged fruit laced with lifting herbal notes and dry spices. It was soft yet juicy on the palate with ripe red fruits accentuated by vibrant acidity, yet it firmed up nicely into the finish, as this formidable Rosso’s youthful tannin clenched the senses. A standout from the 2012s tasted so far; it will be interesting to follow over the next few years.
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1/22/2015 - rjonwine@gmail.com wrote: 90 Points
Dark cherry red color; tart red berry, tart cherry nose; juicy, tart red berry, tart cherry palate; medium-plus finish 90+ points
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11/6/2014 - Yagil wrote: 89 Points
Le Ragnaie visit (Le Ragnaie, Montalcino): transparent dark red-purple, ripe dark fruit aroma & flavours, round tannins, high acidity, complex, tannic medium finish.
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