Valdicava Madonna Del Piano Riserva Brunello Di Montalcino Vertical tasting back to 1997 Friday, August 14th 7:30pm

"Reality is an illusion that occurs due to a lack of wine."  - Anonymous

We do not have any lack of wine here at Wine Watch, we host wine tastings on every week on Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights!  I’m not opposed to drinking on any night as we are now open in the wine bar for wine club members Monday through Saturday night with a new menu every week!

The Wine Watch hosts more wine tastings than any wine store on Earth!  I still remember the first tasting we hosted at the old store, it was with our good friend Vincenzo Abruzese from Valdicava.   So, when we received a cellar that had several old vintages of Valdicava’s top wine, the single vineyard riserva Madonna Del Piano, I said it’s time to do some scientific work with one of Montalcino’s greatest wines!! 

This is one of the only producers to get a (100 Point) score in the Wine Spectator for their Brunello di Montalcino.  And when the 2001 Madonna del Piano was released I set aside a whole case to see how it would be in a few decades.  It is now 20 years since the release, and we are busting out this bottle of 2001 Madonna Del Piano Riserva Brunello di Montalcino from my personal stash for this tasting.  You know my motto – “Always drink the good stuff first”!

Join us as we experience 9 different Riserva Brunello Di Montalcino from this legendary producer along with a special meal to accompany the tasting wines.  The fee for this tasting which includes dinner and gratuity is $375 + tax, for reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.

Valdicava Madonna del Piano Brunello Di Montalcino Vertical Tasting

Friday, August 14th

7:30 PM

Reception

2024 Valdicava Rosso Di Montalcino

1997 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

2001 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

2003 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

2007 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

2009 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

2012 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

2013 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

2016 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano

Menu

Selection of Cheese and Charcuterie

Italian Wedding Soup with Turkey Meat Balls

Beet and Goat Cheese Salad

Fettuccini Bolognese and fresh shaved Parmesan

Dark Chocolate Dipped Hazelnut Biscotti with Limoncello Whipped Crème

The price for this event which includes dinner is $375 + tax.  For reservations call 954-523-9463 or e-mail andy@winewatch.com.  Please let us know when you make your reservations if you have any dietary restrictions and Chef Toni will be happy to accommodate you.

A bit about Valdicava

Valdicava is the name of the area that leads into the foothills of Montalcino.  To the left is the La Casa vineyard of Caparzo and to the right is Val Di Suga and the small hill in the middle of his property is the oldest vines planted on the property (1970) “Madonna del Piano”.   The Valdicava estate was one of the original members of the Brunello consortium, formed in 1967.  Like everyone else in the region the Abrusezzi family was trying to emulate the wines of Biondi Santi.  The early years were tough as the producers were feeling their way through production problems and many did not have the facility to produce outstanding wines.  The 1970’s saw a huge investment of newcomers in Montalcino.  The Cinzano vermouth firm, with Coco-Cola money behind it, headed a group that purchased Col d’Orcia, an estate that has produced wine for years.  Marchesi de Frescobaldi was involved with a group known as Enoviticola Senese, which had French, German, and Spanish investors as well.  Their estate, Castelgiocondo, brought out its first bottles in 1980, not all Brunello.  The most talked about outsider was the house of Banfi, the largest US importer of Italian wines, which had prepared some 1,000 acres of vines (only 125 of them in Montalcino) at a place called Poggio d’Oro, or “The golden Hill”.  With all this new activity the old timers like Valdicava were forced to continually improve their wines to keep up with the foreign talent.  Valdicava has been experimenting with rootstock and different clones of Sangiovese Grosso on their estate for the last thirty years and today they seem to have the winning combination.

Valdicava was one of the rising stars of the Brunello district in the 1990’s and today is considered one of the benchmark producers of this region.  The wines of this estate are the handy work of Vincenzo Abrusezzi.  Vincenzo is a perfectionist.  He will settle for nothing short of excellence and it shows in his work.  He has seen the big companies come in and make a huge impact in terms of recognition of his regions wines but loves the things about this region that make it unique.

This estate has been dedicated to quality from the very start with an ongoing experimentation of rootstock and clone selection refining every vintage of this wine.  The oldest vines on the property were planted in 1970 and the youngest in 2001.  Vincenzo Abrusezzi is one of the leaders in terms of progressive thinking and cutting edge viticulture in Montalcino today.  He has a no chemical/back to nature approach to viticulture at Valdicava and believes that the health of the vineyard is most important and that chemicals harm the long term the health of the soils.  They are a short-term/easy fix to a specific problem and can cause even bigger problems in the long run.

The vineyard is planted 3,000 vines per acre and the soil is a mixture of clay, sand, Galestro and this combination of different soil types, four different rootstocks and four different clones of Sangiovese make Valdicava one of the most unique wines made in Brunello.  Valdicava did years of research to find out which rootstock/clone combination did the best in each particular soil type and the new releases from this winery soundly prove that this is one of the top producers in Brunello Di Montalcino today. The winery produces on average 2,000 cases of Rosso di Montalcino, 2,000 cases of Brunello di Montalcino and 500 cases of the Riserva Brunello di Montalcino labeled “Madonna del Piano”.  Due to the limited production of these wines they can be very hard to find, especially when wine writers like Robert Parker Jr. giving praise to the effect of: "The 1995 Madonna Del piano is a candidate for wine of the vintage."  And even more impressive stating that:  “Vincenzo Abruzzesi is Montalcino’s number one over-achiever with winner after winner since 1988.  The secret – a willingness, indeed eagerness, to spend whatever it takes for quality in addition to utilizing several of Italy’s outstanding consultants, winemaker Attilio Pagli and agronomist Andrea Paoletti (the former Antinori vineyard manager).  Pagli is unfortunately little known to the larger public, but no oenologist in Italy has made so many excellent wines since the mid-1980’s.”

All the wines from Valdicava that we have in the store on SALE!:

2024 Valdicava Rosso Di Montalcino

Price: $52.50                                 Your Price: $47.25

Wine Watch Review: This wine is always an excellent preview of the newest vintage from Tuscany with the 2024 showing an abundance of fruit red plum and red licorice spice with sweet herbs and fresh porcini mushroom nuances.  Bright and fruity on the tongue with a lovely silky character to the tannins already and a host of spices and tongue tingly minerality through the finish, highlights of balsamic, eucalyptus, tea leaves and violets as the wine opens up.  Always very charming upon release but this wine has the balance and freshness to last for 3-5 years easily in the cellar.  The tannins are soft and well integrated and upon the first sip there may be a bit of austerity but as the wine opens up it becomes more refined with a silky and elegant finish, very approachable and ready to drink.  Finish 45+  Excellent

2023 Valdicava Rosso Di Montalcino

Price: $52.00                                 Your Price: $46.80                           Quantity in Stock: 10

2022 Valdicava Rosso di Montalcino

Price: $54.00                                 Your Price: $48.60

2021 Valdicava Brunello Di Montalcino

Price: $242.00                              Your Price: $217.80                                         Quantity in Stock: 12

Very nuanced bouquet of fresh flowers, incense like spice and fresh earth, a graphite like component with licorice spice and lots of earth and wild herbs showing to the nose. Big and chewy on the tongue with lots of ripe tannins showing through the dark cherry and wild strawberry like fruit, very chalky and tannic on the finish but has lots of everything, just needs time big tannins showing all the way to the end, but there is plenty of everything else. Finish 50 Most Excellent

2020 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino MAGNUM DOCG Tuscany, Italy

Price: $418.00                              Your Price: $376.20

2020 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino DOCG

Price: $199.00                              Your Price: $179.10

2019 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino 3 Liter

Price: $1045.00                            Your Price: $940.50

2019 VALDICAVA BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO MAGNUM

Price: $460.00                              Your Price: $414.00                           Quantity in Stock: 5

2019 VALDICAVA BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO

Price: $220.00                              Your Price: $198.00                           Quantity in Stock: 25

2017 Valdicava Brunello Di Montalcino

Price: $230.00                              Your Price: $207.00                           Quantity in Stock: 2

2016 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino 1.5L Magnum

Price: $480.00                              Your Price: $432.00                           Quantity in Stock: 1

2016 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino

Price: $260.00                              Sale Price: $212.50                           Quantity in Stock: 13

2015 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino 3 Liter

Price: $1225.00                            Your Price: $1102.50

2015 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino

Price: $280.00                              Sale Price: $175.00                           Quantity in Stock: 7

2013 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Magnum

Price: $540.00                              Your Price: $486.00

2013 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino DOCG Tuscany, Italy

Price: $260.00                              Sale Price: $175.00                           Quantity in Stock: 12

2012 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino DOCG

Price: $165.00                              Sale Price: $125.00                                         Quantity in Stock: 13

2010 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino (3 Liter)

Price: $1129.00                            Your Price: $1016.10

2010 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino

Price: $250.00                              Sale Price: $199.00                                         Quantity in Stock: 14

2009 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino DOCG

Price: $295.00                              Sale Price: $250.75                                         Quantity in Stock: 5

2008 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino

Price: $250.00                               Your Price: $225.00

2007 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino DOCG

rice: $230.00                                 Your Price: $207.00

2006 Valdicava Brunello Di Montalcino

Price: $270.00                              Your Price: $243.00                                         Quantity in Stock: 8

2005 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino DOCG Tuscany, Italy

Price: $250.00                              Your Price: $225.00

2004 Valdicava Brunello Di Montaclino 3 Liter

Price: $1116.00                            Your Price: $1004.40

2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Magnum

Price: $600.00                              Your Price: $540.00

2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino

Price: $282.00                               Sale Price: $219.00                           Quantity in Stock: 2

2003 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino

Price: $275.00                              Your Price: $247.50                           Quantity in Stock: 6

Madonna Del Piano Riserva

2020 Valdicava Madonna Del Piano Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva DOCG Magnum

Price: $780.00                              Your Price: $702.00

2020 Valdicava Riserva Madonna Del Piano Brunello Di Montalcino DOCG

Price: $390.00                              Your Price: $351.00

(96 Points) The 2020 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano has a brooding bouquet of crushed ashen stones, sweet exotic spices, violet pastille and radiant black cherries. It’s surprisingly cool-toned and sleek with tart red berry fruits and a stern core of minerality. With exceptional length and freshness, the 2020 blends rounded tannins with hints of tangerine and raspberry. The 2020 is unlike any Riserva Madonna del Piano I’ve ever encountered; despite its underlying power, its energy and vibrancy are truly impressive. This stands shoulder-to-shoulder with the 2016 and 2019 vintages, which was no easy feat given the challenges of the 2020 season.  Vinous

2019 Valdicava Madonna Brunello Di Montalcino DOCG Italy (3 LITER)

Price: $2040.00                            Your Price: $1836.00

2019 Valdicava Madonna Del Piano Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva MAGNUM DOCG

Price: $882.00                              Your Price: $793.80

2019 Valdicava Madonna del Piano Riserva Brunello Di Montalcino DOCG Italy

Price: $430.00                               Your Price: $387.00

2016 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva Magnum

Price: $892.00                              Your Price: $802.80

2016 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano (6 LITER)

Price: $4560.00                             Your Price: $4104.00

2016 Valdicava Madonna Del Piano Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva

Price: $436.00                              Your Price: $392.40                           Quantity in Stock: 1

2015 Valdicava Brunello Di Montalcino Madonna Del Piano Riserva (6 LITER)

Price: $4440.00                            Your Price: $3996.00

2015 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano Magnum

Price: $915.00                              Your Price: $823.50

2015 Valdicava Montosoli Brunello Di Montalcino Magnum DOCG Italy

Price: $1068.00                            Your Price: $961.20

2013 Valdicava Riserva Brunello Di Montalcino Madonna del Piano (9 LITER)

Price: $7140.00                            Your Price: $6426.00

2013 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano ( 6 Liter)

Price: $4680.00                            Your Price: $4212.00

2013 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva 3 Liter

Price: $2040.00                            Your Price: $1836.00

2013 Valdicava Brunello Di Montalcino Madonna Del Piano Riserva Magnum

Price: $900.00                              Your Price: $810.00

2013 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva

Price: $439.00                               Sale Price: $225.00                           Quantity in Stock: 8

2012 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva

Price: $436.00                               Your Price: $392.40                           Quantity in Stock: 13

2010 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano ( 9 Liter)

Price: $6840.00                            Your Price: $6156.00

2010 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano ( 6 Liter)

Price: $4320.00                            Your Price: $3888.00

2010 Valdicava Brunello Di Montalcino Madonna Del Piano Riserva 3 Liter

Price: $2040.00                            Your Price: $1836.00

2010 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva MAGNUM

Price: $862.00                              Your Price: $775.80

2010 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna Del Piano Riserva

Price: $438.00                              Your Price: $394.20

2009 Valdicava Brunello Di Montalcino Madonna Del Piano Riserva

Price: $387.00                               Sale Price: $275.00                           Quantity in Stock: 6

2007 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva

Price: $445.00                               Your Price: $400.50

2007 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva MAGNUM

Price: $910.00                               Your Price: $819.00

2006 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva MAGNUM

Price: $905.00                              Your Price: $814.50

2006 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva

Price: $440.00                               Your Price: $396.00

2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva 3 Liter

Price: $2059.00                            Your Price: $1853.10

2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva Magnum

Price: $880.00                              Your Price: $792.00

2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva

Price: $430.00                              Sale Price: $295.00                           Quantity in Stock: 5

2003 Valdicava Brunello Di Montalcino Madonna Del Piano Riserva

Price: $430.00                              Sale Price: $359.00                           Quantity in Stock: 8

1997 Valdicava Madonna Del Piano Brunello Di Montalicno Riserva

Price: $365.00                              Sale Price: $295.00                           Quantity in Stock: 3

2021 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Montosoli Magnum

Price: $1002.50                            Your Price: $902.25

2021 Valdicava Vigna Montosoli Brunello di Montalcino

Price: $485.00                              Your Price: $436.50

(98 Points) The 2021 Brunello di Montalcino Montosoli has a gorgeous bouquet, with sweet smoke and stone dust giving way to crushed woodland berries, rubbed sage, exotic spice and a lifting hint of fresh pine. It’s youthfully dense but seamless and smooth, with polished red fruits and a contrasting tinge of sour citrus. Florals define the finish, alongside fine tannins and echoes of sour cherry. A minute later, slate-inflected mineral tones resonate. This is one of the most complete 2021s I’ve tasted—Valdicava has achieved a striking new level of purity. (EG)  Vinous, Review Date: 11/2025

2019 Valdicava Vigna Montosoli Brunello di Montalcino MAGNUM

Price: $950.00                              Your Price: $855.00                          

2019 Valdicava Vigna Montosoli Brunello di Montalcino

Price: $460.00                              Your Price: $414.00                           Quantity in Stock: 6

2016 Valdicava Vigna Montosoli Brunello di Montalcino MAGNUM

Price: $1016.75                             Your Price: $915.08

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