LE TERRE ROSSE IGT

Le Terre Rosse IGT is the estate's most accessible red wine — a blend of Sangiovese Grosso (60%), Syrah (30%), and Merlot in smaller doses that offers the character of Montalcino's great soil in a more immediately approachable and more broadly versatile form than the Brunello DOCG wines. The name refers to the red earth of the Montalcino territory — the characteristic rusty, iron-rich clay soils that give the vineyards their distinctive colour and that contribute to the wines their particular mineral depth.

The blend is a creative departure from the pure Sangiovese Grosso of the DOCG wines — an acknowledgement that the Syrah and Merlot varieties can, in the right proportions and in the right terroir, add dimensions of aromatic warmth and textural generosity that the Sangiovese Grosso alone does not always provide in its younger expressions. Thirty percent Syrah contributes the peppery, dark-fruited aromatic register of that variety in its most characterful expression; Merlot adds the softness and immediate accessibility that makes the wine genuinely pleasant from the first sip.

The ageing protocol is calibrated to the wine's character: eighteen months in steel — preserving the freshness and fruit vitality of all three varieties — followed by a minimum of four months in bottle before release. This is a wine made for relatively early consumption compared to the Brunello wines, and the ageing protocol reflects that intention: freshness and fruit rather than complexity and development are its primary qualities.

Le Terre Rosse is round, warm, with good acidity and long persistence of taste — the estate's description captures accurately the wine's most inviting qualities. It is the wine through which the Corte dei Venti estate makes Montalcino's extraordinary terroir accessible to those who cannot wait a decade for a Brunello to reveal itself.

Available through UniqueWines. Campaign financed according to EU Reg. No.1308/2013.