Montalcino, 2019 vintage: Comments apply to all wines coming from the town of Montalcino, not just Brunello. However the star ratings are those given by the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino specifically for Brunello di Montalcino DOCG.

2019 Growing season: Francesco Ripaccioli of Canalicchio di Sopra told me ‘2019 was like 2010 or 2015.’

There was no negative carry over from the 2018 vintage into 2019 in terms of disease pathogens.

Spring brought both rain and warmish weather. Bud burst was rather early, at the end of March.

Flowering in May was a staggered affair, with two weeks of good if cool weather due to north winds. This reduced disease pressure (eg. of Downy mildew) but slowed vegetative growth and meant the vines were around 15-20 days behind the norm at this stage.

June and July brought some very hot spells. Much-needed heavy rain at the end of July gave the vines enough water before drought conditions had become critical. Growth then slowed in early August which was very hot (the highest temperatures were 37-38°C). Some growers applied kaolin power (as a ‘sun cream’).

Veraison was on time in mid-August and took place in good weather. This meant that plots would need the chance to ripen at their own pace, permitting slow maturation of the tannins. This made picking each plot at full ripeness easier than when everything ripens at once, and meant there was no excuse for picking with unripe tannins.

September brought a mix of both dry sunny weather and more humid periods. There were two downpours, the second at the end of the month. The risk was grapes with thin skins prone to splitting. There was some hail with the rain events – some organic growers sprayed propolis as an anti-septic, and used zeolite (rock powder, silicate) to dry bunches.

Crucially both rain events were followed by periods of very dry heat. This limited disease issues issues (there were some rot problems due to grapeskins thinner than normal, like in 2005) but may have caused problems in some areas for those who had done very thorough de-leafing around the bunches on arid sites, or those that had already over-enthusiastically crop-thinned.

Some growers reported high levels of anthocyanins, above 3,000 (2,800 is considered usual), others found only just enough colour and tannin to extract. Cool nights in October meant the grapes had juice with potentially excellent pH (3.20–3.30) and TA (6g/l). This allowed flexible picking for where vine health was especially good, meaning grapes could be picked at the right moment, as alcohol levels were no longer rising.

Yields are potentially high at around 70-80 quintals per hectare (75 is allowed for Brunello). The 2019 vintage appears to have been one of both quantity and quality overall.

Montalcino’s Rollercoaster 2019 vintage: An article I wrote for the Academie du Vin.

‘Very happy and rather relieved’ are the words many Montalcino growers might use to describe their feelings following the 2019 harvest. It’s one to file under the ‘abundant but turbulent’ category.

Warm, wet spring weather at the end of March provoked an early bud burst for the Sangiovese vines. But according to biodynamic wine grower Jan Erbach of Pian dell’Orino, flowering in May was ‘a staggered affair’. Two weeks of clear but cool weather due to north winds slowed things right down. The wind reduced disease pressure from peronospera (Downy mildew) but slowed vegetative growth. ‘By late spring, the vines were around 15–20 days behind the norm,’ said Erbach.

June and July brought some really hot spells, allowing the vines to catch up a bit. Much-needed heavy rain at the end of July was crucial. It gave the vine shoots and leaves enough water before the onset of drought conditions toppled noticeable vine stress into the near-critical category.

Growth then slowed in early August with further Saharan temperatures, reaching 37–38°C.

The intense heat reduced the threat of disease but may have caused other problems such as heat stress and sunburn, especially for vines on arid sites or which had been subject to de-leafing around the bunches to expose them to sunshine. Vines whose owners had already over-enthusiastically crop-thinned so the vine wasn’t overburdened ran the same risk: heat stress causing high sugars but unripe green seeds leaving wines with  sweet’n sour tone.

At the organic Argiano estate, vineyard manager Franceso Monari applied kaolin, a reflective white powder applied to the vines to act as a sun block rather than cream. ‘And we didn’t deleaf,’ he says.

Veraison (the point at which the grapes begin to change colour) was on time in mid-August and, crucially, took place in good weather. Vineyard plots could now ripen steadily, the sunshine permitting an ideal slow maturation of the tannins. ‘It also meant it was then possible to pick each plot at perfect flavour ripeness,’ says Jan Erbach, who was pleased to harvest his three, fairly small, non-contiguous vineyard sites over nearly one month.

September brought a mix of both dry, sunny weather and more humid periods. There were two downpours, the second at the end of the month. The risk was that (as in 2005), with thinner skins than normal, the grapes would become prone to splitting [as they swelled with the rain, yes as they were v thirsty!. 

Crucially, both rain events were followed by periods of very dry heat – although each brought some isolated hail. Some organic growers sprayed propolis, which is derived from beeswax and acts as an anti-septic against any hail damage, and zeolite, a rock powder which helps the Sangiovese bunches dry quickly after showers.

These sprays limited potential disease issues caused by thinner, more rot-prone grape-skins, but may have exacerbated sunburn situations for those who had over-enthusiastically de-leafed around the bunches, or crop-thinned. It may also explain why some growers reported high levels of tannin and colour, while others found only just enough colour and tannin to extract.

Cool nights at harvest time allowed flexible picking [as ripening was slow and steady] Where vine health was especially good, grapes could be picked at the optimum moment, as alcohol [sugar? YES] levels were no longer rising. This meant the grapes had juice with potentially excellent acid strength [balance? YES, you can say that and delete acid strength, which is my term for pH], which is an indicator of wines with great ageing potential.

Yields are potentially high at around 70–80 quintals per hectare (75 is allowed for Brunello). 180 quintals is 8 tons/ha = approximately 52 hl/ha of wine.]

So, while it was a bit of a rollercoaster ride, the 2019 Montalcino vintage eventually brought both quantity and quality. As well as being happy and relieved, Montalcino’s growers are also rather replete.