From: Tuscany, Italy
Varietal: Sangiovese
Critical Acclaim: "The purity of fruit here is so stunning with blackberry, black-cherry, black-truffle and floral aromas, as well as orange peel. It’s full-bodied and very compact with ultra fine tannins that are copious and balanced. It goes on for such a long time. The purity and precision is something else, not to mention the length and depth. So delicious now and a joy to taste.” –James Suckling, 100 points
“The PS is the sole single vineyard bottle produced by Siro Pacenti, with only 1000 bottles and 200 magnums being produced. PS is sourced from vines planted by Siro Pacenti in the early 1970s on the northwest side of Montalcino and is only produced in the best vintages. The 2015 PS is rich and inviting, with sweet blackberry and plum fruit, licorice, and crushed lavender. The palate is full, though it has more freshness than the nose would suggest, with gripping tannins and energetic acidity to match. The warmth of the vintage is tangible, and for that reason I believe the 2016 will have some edge in the long haul for aging potential. As with the rest of the Brunello line-up, the PS spent two years in French oak of 225 liters that is noticeable but poised for a polished style. Enjoy over the next 15 years.” –Jeb Dunnuck, 95 points
“The Franco Pacenti 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva (with 6,500 bottles made) is a dense and nicely concentrated wine with plush and rich fruit flavors. Blackberry, plum and wild cherry cede to spice, potting soil and blue flower. There is an underlying mineral component as well. Although this Riserva has integrated nicely in the six years since the harvest, the fruit feels fresh and youthful nonetheless. Give it a few more years in your cellar.” –Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, 94 points
“Dark cherries, cloves and dusty rose lift up from the aromatically stunning 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva PS. This gains in depth and richness with time in the glass, as hints of plum sauce and sage evolve. You can feel the sheer weight of the old vines here, soaking the palate with velvety depths of spicy red and black fruits, but with a cooling wave of minty herbs. Soft, sweet tannins gain a salty and very mineral twang under an air of savory herbs and tobacco, showing incredibly long and structured yet massively dark, like a black hole of concentration. Frankly, I underestimated this wine the last time I tasted it, and I am happy to upgrade my score.” –Vinous, 94 points
About this wine. PS is made from the grapes grown in a 1.5-hectare single vineyard planted by Siro Pacenti on the north side of Montalcino (Pelagrilli) at the beginning of the 1970s. Pelagrilli is characterized by clayey, sandy soils, sitting 350 meters above sea level at the base of the Montalcino hill.
The wine is bottled only in exceptional vintages like the one in 2015. This vineyard was harvested by hand with manual grape sorting before and after the destemming, and the fermentation took place in temperature-controlled stainless steel. The wine then aged in 225-liter French oak barrels for 24 months before bottling without filtration and aging before release.
About Siro Pacenti. The Pacenti estate was established in 1970, with the purchase of the property north of Montalcino (Pelagrilli) by Siro, who then proceeded to plant important vineyards that remain productive today in the fresh, clay soils of the land overlooking Siena. In 1988, management passed into the hands of Giancarlo. This was the harvest year the estate’s Rosso and Brunello di Montalcino were bottled for the first time.
In the early 1990s, the estate expanded to include land south of Montalcino (Piancornello), where Giancarlo’s maternal grandfather planted five hectares of vines in mineral-rich soils at the end of the 1960s. The ’90s were also marked by the start of the partnership with the University of Bordeaux and the first experiments on phenolic maturity applied to Sangiovese (Yves Glories). The new cellar was built between 2001 and 2004, combining technology and experience with respect for the grapes and the land. Today, the estate cultivates 22 hectares of Sangiovese.
