Red

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The history of Il Paradiso di Manfredi starts back in 1914 with the birth of Manfredi Martini in Montalcino. Fast-forward to the 1950s and he was working for the only producer in Montalcino in those days, the iconic Biondi-Santi. He and his wife, Fortunata, then purchased an estate in 1958. Apparently, the name Il Paradiso stemmed from a priest who lived with the Martinis in the early 1900s deeming the area paradise. Thus, the estate of Il Paradiso di Manfredi was born. However, the sobriquet wasn’t totally appropriate as there was a catastrophic winter in the sixties which was so bad that it destroyed the estate’s olive trees! Luckily for wine lovers, this led directly to Manfredi replacing these trees with vines instead. In 1967, he was amongst a group who founded the Consorzio del Brunello di Montalcino association and, at that point, there were only twelve producers – today there are around 200! Following his death in 1982, Florio Guerrini, his son-in-law, took over with the help of his wife, Rosella.

The compact estate of three hectares is nestled on the side of the hill on which the town of Montalcino is perched. Of these, two and a half hectares are planted to vine – two of which produce Brunello di Montalcino from Sangiovese Grosso (called Brunello here). Sangiovese is also the grape of Chianti and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano amongst others. From these two and a half hectares, they produce between 6,000 and 8,000 bottles of Brunello plus between 1,800 and 3,000 bottles of Rosso di Montalcino per year. In addition, 1,200 bottles of Riserva are made in years deemed special by the family. The artisanal nature of production here can be compared to that of Banfi who produce more than 50,000 cases of Brunello per year!

The vineyards are placed on terraces, parallel along the hill of Montalcino, with varying altitudes (approximately 300 metres above sea level) and are exposed on the north side. This is a land rich in fossils and shells and they provide excellent nourishment to the vines’ roots. These north-facing vineyards produce lithe, refined wines with redcurrant and sour red-cherry aromas and flavours compared to those from the southern sectors which tend towards riper, red-cherry and even dark plum aromas and flavours along with a much richer mouthfeel. These stark differences can sometimes lead to the two types feeling like different wines altogether as Sangiovese is so good at transmitting its terroir. There are seven different vineyard parcels and a mixture of all these aids the wine’s complexity.

Following such a long history as regards Brunello, it will come as no surprise that the estate has made wine using traditional methods since its inception. Manfredi never used herbicides and fertilisers and this approach has been followed by the present incumbents. Thus, this estate long preceded the trend of biodynamic viticulture but they are now classified as such!

As previously mentioned, things stay along traditional lines in the winery (a 19th century construction). The grapes are fermented in cement-lined tanks with wild yeasts. The wine is then transferred by gravity into large Slavonian oak barrels. The Brunellos remain in these barrels for at least three years and sometimes longer – 36 to 40 months for the Brunello and 48 to 54 months for the Riserva. However, the Rosso only sees the barrels for approximately 14 months. The wine is bottled without ever having suffered the stress of being pumped. There is no fining, no filtration and no acidification. All of this allows the wine to speak clearly of its terroir.

“Very pretty bright red color. Intense violet, black cherry and licorice on the nose. Then similar flavors in the mouth, with a balsamic note lingering nicely on the youthfully chewy, persistent and strongly spicy (cloves, especially) finish. Interestingly, this enters herbal and develops more and more fruit as it sits in the glass. 70% Sangiovese grown around Le Chiuse’s winery and 30% Sangiovese from the Pullera plot near the Biondi-Santi winery. Aged 14 months of used 20-30hL Slavonian oak. Drinking window: 2020-2024. 91 points

Part of Le Chiuse’s vineyards once belonged to Biondi-Santi, and were used for that estate’s world-famous Brunello Riserva. When Tancredi Biondi-Santi died, the property was divided between Franco and Fiorella Biondi-Santi. The latter was current Le Chiuse owner Simonetta Valiani’s mother. Simonetta wanted to make wine a long time ago and began doing so in 1992 aided by her husband Niccolò Magnelli. During the first years Franco Biondi-Santi graciously acted as a mentor, helping them choose massal selections from the Biondi-Santi Il Greppo estate. The estate’s first Rosso was the 1992, the first Brunello was the 1993 and the first Brunello Riserva the 1995. Simonetta Valiani’s son Lorenzo Magnelli now runs the estate. Though Magnelli studied enology for two years, he was needed back at the estate in 2006, in the meantime he managed also a stint of 3 months working at Rubicon in California. 2006 was the year the estate hired Valentino Ciarla, a well-known Italian winemaking consultant, who is still on board today. Le Chiuse is a very traditional estate, amongst the first to harvest every year (clearly, very much following Biondi-Santi’s example). Lorenzo Magnelli lives on the estate and pays extreme attention to harvesting at the optimal time; living at the winery enables him to intervene at precisely the right time. The estate owns eight hectares, of which seven hectares are situated all around the winery building, plus a small plot called Pullera across the road from the Biondi-Santi building (Tancredi used to make wine from that plot as well). The estate’s oldest vines are those of the not-so poetically named Vineyard number 2 (roughly 32 years old) from where Le Chiuse makes its Brunello Riserva today. Vineyard 1, replanted about 15 years ago, was the original one used by Tancredi Biondi-Santi to contribute to his Riserva. The Rosso di Montalcino is essentially a declassified Brunello, made from the estate’s youngest vines and biggest grape bunches. Le Chiuse practices certified organic farming.”

Ian D’Agata, Vinous (04/20)