Le Chiuse 2017: new release

Le Chiuse 2017 is the one of our top picks of the vintage in Brunello di Montalcino. Estate manager Niccolo Magnelli chose not to make a riserva this year, and blended these grapes into the regular Brunello. This made for an exceptional wine, named “one of the best wines of the vintage” by Wine Enthusiast and “a flat out success” by Vinous.

The quality of the terroir at Le Chiuse is well known. For many years, the grapes went into Biondi Santi’s riserva. This arrangement that continued until 1993, when current owner Simonetta Valiani inherited the land. The estate benefits from a northerly, high altitude site with water-retaining soils. These factors allowed the vines to succeed in the hot, dry conditions of 2017 that proved problematic in warmer terroirs.

Today, Le Chiuse is today farmed organically. Maturation is traditional, in large Slavonian oak casks.  In most years, the estate makes a late release riserva, aged for 10 years before release, as well as the Brunello.

This is a tiny estate by Brunello standards: there are only 6 hectares under vine. In Le Chiuse 2017, quantities were down a further 10% due to dry conditions, leading to particularly concentrated grapes.

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