Caparzo is an estate winery in Località Caparzo in the northern part of the Montalcino region of Tuscany, one of two properties there which are owned by Elisabetta Gnudi Angelini, Altesino being the other. She bought it in 1998 from its previous owners, a thirteen-strong group headed by Nuccio Turone. This group evolved from an initial body of four investor friends from Milan (including Giancarlo Cignozzi of Il Paradiso di Frassina, and Nuccio Turone) who used it as a holiday home whilst developing the existing small vineyard. Another of the four was Giulio Consonno (he invited Sergio Rossi to work on the project, and the latter then created his own estate, La Gerla). The owners also developed the neighbouring estate, the above-mentioned Altesino. Caparzo produces red wine under the Brunello di Montalcino DOCG and a Moscadello di Montalcino DOC sweet white made from Moscato Bianco (Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains, Muscat de Frontignan).

Owner: Elisabetta Gnudi Angelini. Her other Tuscan estates are  Borgo Scopeto in Chianti Classico and Doga delle Clavule in the Morellino di Scansano DOCG.

The name: Caparzo is derived from Ca’ del Pazzo or house of the madman.

Staff: Winemaker: Massimo Bracalente. Under the previous owners, from 1970 onwards Vittorio Fiore worked here. In 2014 Paolo Vagaggini was the external consulting oenologist here.

Vineyards: In 1970 there were 1ha of vines. In 1981 Caparzo comprised 65ha of which 32ha were vineyards. In 2004 there were 74 hectares of vines, 25ha here at Caparzo by the winery and others in the commune of Montalcino at La Casa, Il Cassero San Piero Caselle and La Caduta. 

White wines

Le Grance Bianco: Barrel-aged Chardonnay.

Red wines

Ca del Pazzo: A Sangiovese and Cabernet red labelled as Toscana Rosso or Sant’Antimo Rosso. In 1982 Ca’ del Pazzo was the first wine made in Montalcino using barriques.

Rosso di Montalcino DOC, La Caduta: Aged in 700l barrels.

Rosso di Montalcino DOC, Caparzo | 2010 At the consorzio with Ian d’Agata Tuesday 28th May 2013: Lightish-medium crimson core. Limpid rim. Broad nose, weighty red fruit on nose (raspberry and vanilla rather than dark cherry) and palate, crisp and seemingly lean but it has width, partly because of the oak but also because of the fruit (mature vines I guess). | 2011 At the consorzio with Ian d’Agata Tuesday 28th May 2013: Bright, medium intense crimson, limpid. Soft nose, red plumskin, quite reserved, introvert, ripe; creamy palate, ripe, well selected, firmish centre with fluffy red fruit around it, attractive and moreish, tidy end, lovely purity. | 2011 130,000 bottles. Modernernist bright pinched cherry style, starting to go a bit orange, simple and commercial (Anteprima 2014). | 2012 130,000 bottles. Light, simple and fluffy (Anteprima 2015). | 2018 150,000 bottles.

Brunello di Montalcino DOCG, Caparzo: 2000 High tone nose, decent light style, well constructed but lacks depth (Anteprima 18 Feb 2005(. | 2006 Bottled. 2007 Bottled. | 2008 Bottled. | 2009 160,000 bottles. Lightish colour, open, bit like a simple Rosso but with a bit more class (Anteprima 2014). | 2009 13.5%. L 329693. Ruby-garnet with more ruby than garnet in the middle. Not much nose. Simple fruit (raspberry) and tannin. Very drinkable style, more like a Rosso di Montalcino than a Brunello (at the Consorzio Tues 27th May 2014 with Ian d’Agata and others). | 2009 Savoury black fruit, odd nose, exotic, very ripe, deepish limpid colour, old wood, nice texture, low acid blind at Col d’Orcia 14 June 2014. | 2010 160,000 bottles. Palid colour, simple, light, ripe and savoury (Anteprima 2015). | 2014 A darker, almost slightly roasted Brunello whose tannins need to settle to allow the fruit of which there is just about enough to come to the fore (Anteprima 2019). | 2015 180,000 bottles.

Brunello di Montalcino DOCG, Vigna La Casa: Flagship single site wine from The La Casa vineyard on the Montosoli hill. 275 m above sea level. I think the vineyard is south-west-facing, but the winery blurb says La Casa has a south-south-east aspect, on loose shale-sandy soil rich in scheletro (very fine gravel). In 2014 Mirco Biliorsi emailed me to say Altesino had ‘almost 5 hectares on Montosoli. SO4 rootstock. South-west facing. Clay-shale soil. Fermented in stainless steel. The wine ages 1 year in 225-litre French oak barrels and 2 years in 30-50hl French oak vats.’ | 1977 Debut vintage. | 2007 Porty nose (DWWA 2013, Silver). | 2008 Around 12,000 bottles says Mirco Biliorsi. Aged in both barrique and botti I think. Not a wine to keep, narrow, sexy and not heavy, clever in terms of grape yield/cashflow but hardly inspirational (Anteprima 2014). | 2008 L3079 23. Bright ruby core with garnet shade. Expressive but primary nose: bright red fruit and vanilla. Palate shows blunt fruit tannins overlaid by well-handled oak allied to very obviously raspberry fruit. Simple crowd-pleasing end with drinkability and accessibility the key at the Consorzio Tues 27th May 2014 with Ian d’Agata and others. | 2010 Seems a bit confected, plump and fluffy, no real texture, not bad, commercial (Anteprima 2015). | 2015 35,000 bottles.

Brunello di Montalcino DOCG Riserva, Caparzo: 2006 | Bottled. | 2009 15,000 bottles. Plump, bit dry, sweet middle, savoury dry end (Anteprima 2015).

Sweet wines

Moscadello di Montalcino DOC, Caparzo: A light, dried grape wine (‘passito’) with a little noble rot.

Contact

Caparzo

Strada Provinciale del Brunello Km 1,700

Località Caparzo 53024 Montalcino (Siena)

Tel+39 0577 848390 +39 0577 847166 | Website: www.caparzo.com