The oldest of the four and the most relaxed for it: ripe cherry and redcurrant, an earthy spice and soft tannins. A Sangiovese sitting exactly where it should be now.
Ruby red with the first garnet glints at the rim. The nose is open and inviting: ripe cherry and redcurrant, then an earthy spice, dried flowers and a trace of leather that betrays the bottle age. On the palate the wine is supple and approachable, with juicy red fruit and tannins that have melted entirely into the whole. The freshness is unmistakably still there, keeping the finish lively and medium-long. Drink it now — it asks for no patience, and would gain nothing from it. What sets it apart from an everyday Sangiovese is the tension the altitude of the vineyards has given it, still palpable after four years. Lovely with salumi, pappa al pomodoro, stuffed peppers, or simply a bowl of pasta.
In Montalcino, grandparents call their granddaughters potazzine, after the small, brightly coloured birds of the Tuscan countryside. That is what their grandmother called Viola and Sofia, the daughters of owner Gigliola Giannetti — and the estate grew in step with them: Viola was born in 1993, the founding year, and when Sofia arrived in 1996 two more hectares took the total to five.
From its first harvest the estate has worked with wild yeasts alone. Not folklore but a risk: such a fermentation can stall before it has finished. Oenologist Roberta Tiberi keeps it on course — everything here is women's work — and those yeasts give the wines their extra dimension.
At 35,000 bottles a year Le Potazzine is small in volume. In quality it belongs among the very best of Montalcino, and this Sangiovese says so without any embellishment.
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