• STORY: The opposite of a young "mainstreamer" would probably be the tradition-conscious "old schooler". Or Biondi Santi. The famous winery south-east of Montalcino can pride itself on not only having invented its own style of wine, Brunello, but also on sticking to it to this day.

• AGEING: The wine is made exclusively from grapes from the oldest vines. These vines are at least 25 years old. After temperature-controlled fermentation, the wine ages in oak barrels for three years and then ages in bottle for at least another six months before leaving the winery.

• AROMA: Jammy aromas, fine cherries and mint come to the fore

• EVALUATION: The wine is mature on the palate, with power and a spicy and concentrated finish

• SERVING RECOMMENDATIONS: goes well with roasts of red meat, spicy dishes, strong cheeses and pasta.

The opposite of a young "mainstreamer" would probably be the tradition-conscious "old schooler". Or Biondi Santi. The famous winery south-east of Montalcino can pride itself on not only having invented its own style of wine, Brunello, but also on sticking to it to this day. With the aim of capturing and holding on to the time in their wines, Biondi-Santi orientates themselves with a lot of patience and dedication to the individual needs of the wines themselves. Even during the maturing process, they want to meet the high quality standards. Everything is still going the way Ferruccio Biondi Santi once said. It was he who, in 1888 with a brilliant intuition, isolated a Sangiovese Grosso clone and created the world-famous Brunello del Montalcino. The clone BBS 11 (Brunello Biondi Santi 11) still forms the basis today. When it comes to winemaking, Jacopo Biondi Santi and his son Tancredi Jun., who now run the estate, rely on the proven methods of their ancestors: meticulous hand-picking, extended maceration times and 36 months of barrel aging in Slavonian oak. With all determination they hold fast to the family principle to produce outstanding Brunelli for eternity. Time is the top priority. This also means that at Biondi-Santi the wines are allowed to mature in the bottle for a significantly longer period before they are released. This allows them to develop their full balance, complexity and finesse and express their incredible elegance. In particularly good years, Biondi-Santi also produces a Brunello Riserva. For this purpose, grapes from the oldest vineyards, up to 80 years old, are selected. Simultaneously seductive and aristocratic, these wines tame even the young savages and make them kneel before such concentrated elegance in the glass. This is stuff that only legends can achieve, with a potential to mature for up to 100 years.