2001 Monte Antico Toscana IGT

Garagiste

• By Jon Rimmerman
  6/15/2009, (See more on Garagiste...)

  (MONTE ANTICO) Bargain Magnum Dear Friends, Some of you may laugh at this but I thought it was too good of a price to pass up. Normally, we shy away from something like this (the production is too high and you can find the wine on every corner in America) but the material in the 2001 version of this wine was always above its own pedigree and the magnums are from even finer stock. Long hailed as one of the top Monte Antico's ever produced (if that's saying much), the 2001 in youth had far more in common with its near-by Montalcino roots than most would imagine. Like 2005 in Bordeaux or Burgundy, the 2001 vintage in this area was so good it trickled all the way down to the most plebian of wines, elevating them to a much higher standard. While the 750's of this wine have begun their decline (the bottles show quite a bit of variation as well depending on what region of the US they were imported to), the magnums are a different story. They bottled a small series of magnums from a group of barrels they thought had the strongest material in 2001. The wine was going to be labeled as something new (i.e. more expensive) but in the end they simply used the Monte Antico label. As time slipped away, the magnums remained in Italy (albeit in proper storage) without a home or "marketing plan" and they languished (not sure why they required a marketing plan - how about just opening the cork and allowing people to taste the wine?). In any regard, the 2001 magnums are about to land, ready to be enjoyed at your summer picnic or favorite festival for 20-30 of your closest friends. Whatever the origin, this price for a large-format Tuscan wine (from a top vintage) does not happen very often so I will give this the benefit of the doubt. While I would pass on the regular mass-produced 750's of this wine, the limited magnums have actually evolved into something, well, quite interesting: 2001 Monte Antico 1.5lt (Tuscany) Thank you, Jon Rimmerman Garagiste Seattle, WA Italy8898