Deal of the Year! - Vintage Berkeley

Deal of the Year.



The Tuscan estate of Casanuova delle Cerbaie
 

2011 Casanuova delle Cerbaie
Brunello di Montalcino


Wine Enthusiast: 92 points.

Normally: $80. (See here., e.g.)


Our price: Only $58 on 1! Buy here!
Only $49 on 6! Buy here!
And only 
$40 on 12! Buy here!
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Get Decade-Perfected
'Grand Cru' Brunello... for 50% Off!


TL; DR: Get a high-scoring, we-did-the-aging-for-you, 2011 Brunello di Montalcino... for ~ 28% off the usual price on bottle #1... and 50% off on the case! Made from organically farmed "Grand Cru" fruit from one of Brunello's most sought-after producers, this may be the most fantasticus offer of this entire annus horribilis! Plus: it drinks as gorgeously now as it will in another decade... so case up!



After a year that can be fairly described as extraordinary? We needed a deal of the year that could measure up. So we waited. And waited. And waited some more.

While 2021 already saw some stunning, Vintage Berkeley-defining values, we're proud to offer the best one yet, right at the buzzer: a perfectly aged $80 Brunello di Montalcino, sourced from what Ian D'Agata called "arguably Montalcino's single greatest grand cru..." for only $40 on the case! The greedy and wise among you will just click, here, now — but for the rest of you, let's engage in some vinous foreplay, shall we?

Before delving into the magical specifics of the 2011 Casanuova delle Cerbaie, let's start with: what is Brunello?

Well, if Burgundy's the apotheosis of Pinot Noir, and Barolo's considered the sanctum sanctorum for the Nebbiolo grape? Then the happiest of happy places for Sangiovese — a grape that's often considered to be Italy's greatest — is a little Tuscan town called Montalcino.

Unlike Burgundy, though, where every postage stamp's worth of land has been divvied up into hierarchical order, Montalcino has yet to formally designate its Grand Cru sites. But virtually every Italian wine critic — people who can't come to consensus on almost anything — are in agreement that if one site deserves Grand Cru status? It's the Montosoli hill, in Montalcino's north, famed since the middle ages.


The 'Grand Cru' vineyard of Montosoli

"The Montosoli hill in the northern sector is arguably Montalcino’s single greatest grand cru (and certainly its most famous)." -Ian d'Agata
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As with all great vineyard sites, it's about the soil, stupid — and Montosoli is prized for its unique 'galestro' soil: a multi-layered complex of silty, limestone-rich clay. (It gives wines from here a mineral, nigh-saline component that helps the best of the best blind-tasting somms identify not just that they're drinking Brunello... but that they're drinking a Brunello from Montosoli!)

But Montosoli also has another crucial component: elevation. The vineyard often sits well above the fog line, helping to protects the vines from heat (increasingly important in climate change-era winemaking) and yields wines of legendary vibrancy, acidity, and elegance.

 



One of the very few producers privileged to get to work with this legendary site is Casanuova delle Cerbaie. A traditionalist, they farm organically, ferment with only naturally occurring yeasts, and age in huge Stockinger barrels, so that oak doesn't overpower place. They usually reserve their Montosoli fruit for their even higher-priced 'Riserva' bottling, but in 2011, they put all of their Grand Cru fruit into their extraordinary, "ordinary" Brunello.

Brunello is meant to be aged, and ten years in, this wine is in a gorgeous, gorgeous spot: aromas of red berries, leather, licorice root, and dried flowers lift up, over a palate that's alive with dark cherry, fresh strawberry, licorice root, savory tobacco, and a salty minerality. The tannins are silky, the finish is lifted and long, and the whole is, well, really something. F
or those of us that believe that Sangiovese should be governed by balance, and not massive, over-muscled heft? That Brunello should have aromatic lift and nerve, in addition to a powerful, earthy core? This is that thing. 

We're not alone, mind you; Wine Enthusiast also raved it up in a high-scoring review, saying: 


"Wild berry, new leather and thyme are some of the aromas you'll discover in this savory Brunello. The palate doles out juicy black cherry, ripe raspberry, white pepper and tobacco notes, while firm, polished tannins offer support."

Those well-heeled honchos at the magazine deemed it a must-buy at $80. But at $40? For a wine you'll be as happy drinking now as you will with your as-yet-unborn children? Well, there's a reason there's only one Deal of the Year!

So whether this is a 2021 year-redeemer, or the first of your resolutions for 2022 (note to self: drink amazing sh!#; also: pay less for it!), get in on our buzzer-beating deal of the year: a perfectly cellared, high-scoring Brunello di Montalcino, sourced from what's arguably the region's single greatest hillside site... for 50% off!
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2011 Casanuova delle Cerbaie
Brunello di Montalcino


Wine Enthusiast: 92 points

Normally: $80. (See here., e.g.)


Our price: Only $58 on 1! Buy here!
Only $49 on 6! Buy here!
And only 
$40 on 12! Buy here!