"BARONCINI" VINO NOBILE DI MONTEPULCIANO
PRODUCER: CANTINE BARONCINI
DOCG TUSCANY

The hill town of Montepulciano in southeast Tuscany is the home of this red wine with the resounding name and the legend of having been described as 'king of all wines' by the poet Francesco Redi in the 17th century.
But VNM lived up to its name recently when a series of fine vintages and a new generation of progressive winemakers brought about a rapid turn for the better.
Promotion to DOCG helped weed out the inferior products which prevailed in the early 1980s.
This wine bears a family resemblance to both Chianti Classico and Brunello, since its mainstay is Prugnolo Gentile, a type of Sangiovese. But it stands in a class of its own, due to the special conditions of soil and climate on the slopes facing the Chiana Valley and the presence in the blend of Canaiolo (which softens Prugnolo's inherent vigor) and Mammolo (which lends a telling bouquet of violets).