Sesti

Why Sesti is Essential

The drive from the town of Montalcino to the Sesti family winery at Castello di Argiano is undeniably lovely. Vistas galore, a palette of green and golden hills, the bright enduring sky: It is Tuscany writ large. But it is also a lesson in the problems and solutions the mighty Brunello di Montalcino DOCG faces in the age of a changing climate. This southwestern corner has always been significantly warmer, but that fact is becoming more extreme. As you descend from the appellation's namesake hilltop town, the road eventually becomes arrow straight and you pass through several expansive vineyards with little ground cover. These vineyards must cook in the sun, one cannot help but think. And indeed, if you drink Italian wine as often as I do, the taste of alcohol and burning tannins probably comes to mind as well.

But then relief arrives at Sesti. Just past the Argiano winery, you arrive at this small winery with 13 hectares of vines. It is a ridge-top estate ensconced in forest and crowned by a Medieval castle tower. You have to look through the trees to see the vineyards, and therein lies part of the secret of this magical place: the wines benefit from the cooling effect of maritime winds that funnel off the ridge slopes, and at night, the sheltering trees release air that is a few degrees cooler, which aids in the phenolic development and preservation of acidity within Sangiovese. If Brunello di Montalcino is going to stay relevant in its increasingly hot future, estates are going to need to look a lot more like Sesti.

At the helm of this wonderful winery since 1999 is second-generation winemaker Elisa Sesti, whose thoughtfulness and sense of precision can be detected in each glass of her wine. Elisa is highly connected to her estate and its surroundings. She knows all the folds of the land and why they matter, as well as the historical details of the property that have lent richness not only to her family's story, but the greater whole of Tuscany.

However, the Sesti family is not originally Tuscan. Her father is a Venetian, and he met Elisa's mother in Wales while studying music. A passion for astronomy, not wine, led the couple to Castello di Argiano in the 1970s, when they began the restoration of the property. Giuseppe Sesti soon began to pickup winemaking know-how by attending tastings at other wineries in the area and serving as their English translator in the 1980s. "He wasn't paid for it," Elisa told me. "I suppose he just wanted to get out of the house." After all, she added, he had four children, 20 horses, an opera to manage, a book to write and a crumbling castle to restore ... which, mind you, has an uncanny habit of getting struck by lightning.

From this "gig" emerged one of Tuscany's greatest wineries. Elisa recalls her father's feeling about their land and its potential. To not plant it with Brunello di Montalcino "would be an insult."

Giuseppe's background in science and music were conducive to what winemaking required: a mixture of logic and art. It is a thread that his daughter maintains to this day, as she threads together wines of confidence and complexity, but that never give in to ego or brashness. It is an exceedingly rare trait in Montalcino. Whether its the succulent Rosato, the delicious Rosso di Montalcino or the towering "Phenomena" Brunello di Montalcino Riserva, each Sesti wine has an artfulness that emerges on its quenching finish. They are wines to savor now, or in the years to come.

Wines to Seek Out

Elisa Sesti prefers to vinify her regular and Riserva Brunello di Montalcino wines for 39 and 51 months respectively in 30hL oak casks, which place "gentle brushstrokes on the wine," as she notes.

Yes, there is elegance, but make no mistake: these wines are still very much Brunello. They are brooding and dark-fruit toned — even aggressive at first sip — but they preserve the character of this unique clone of Sangiovese and never veer off into stewed fruit and excessive-alcohol territory, like so many today do. And while they need several years of bottle-aging to reach their peak, they show nicely in youth with ample aeration: the acidity is quenching, the tannins like cotton, but more importantly, the black cherry-tangerine-smoked meat tenor of Brunello is oh-so-enticing.

Another trait that makes Sesti unique is their ability to make non-Brunello wines from their estate vineyards. The Sauvignon and especially the Rosato are the perfect aperitivo for a balmy Tuscan evening.

Sesti Sauvignon Toscana

This pleasant and textural Sauvignon Blanc is a touch more reserved than your standard gooseberry snappers, and that's exactly the point. From a small vineyard surrounded by forest.

Sesti Rosato Toscana

Elisa Sesti noted that when they produced this — the first rosé in Tuscany — in 2003, there was confusion among authorities on how to classify it. That's what you get when you blaze a new trail, and to this day, this O.G. upholds its place as one of the finest examples of salmon-colored Sangiovese. There is a touch of strawberry-like fruit to complement the varietal character and a precise, spectacular mineral finish to keep you going for another sip.

Sesti Rosso di Montalcino

When assessing Montalcino estates, I begin here: with the winery's Rosso di Montalcino. You can tell a lot about the ethos of the winemaker based on how refreshing (or not) their Rosso di Montalcino is. At Sesti, the Rosso di Montalcino bodes well for the Brunello di Montalcino's to come, presenting precise raspberry-inflected cherry tones and a clean, mouth-watering finish to pair with a wealth of cuisine.

Sesti Brunello di Montalcino

Boldness is not the opposite of elegance. That's the lesson learned from this brooding, assertive wine that manages to glide across the palate with ease and finish like a receding wave. Sesti's unique microclimate likely accounts for much of this balance, but so does Elisa's winemaking skill, as the wine's élevage in 30hL oak casks (quite large) gives the wine a steady and slow maturation to smooth out the edges without losing its verve. The 2016 vintage of this wine is particularly excellent.

Sesti "Phenomena" Brunello di Montalcino Riserva

Each year of Sesti's Riserva Brunello di Montalcino takes its inspiration from a major celestial event that defined the vintage. It could be a solar eclipse, the transit of Mars through Aquarius, or a particularly intense meteor shower just after harvest. The tale is encapsulated on the label, and it serves to underline the astronomical passion of Sesti's founder.

But unique label aside, "Phenomena" is a phenomenal wine for the cellar. Made from "the best of the harvest, wherever it is" among Sesti's 4 hectares of Brunello-designated vineyards, the "Phenomena" takes Sesti's annata Brunello di Montalcino and ratchets up the intensity and energy by about 20% or so. It takes time to show its details, so be sure to give it a few hours of oxygen if you pull the cork while it is young. Your reward will be Sesti's signature minerality and freshness complemented by the power and intensity Brunello is famous for. Only 3,500 bottles are made each vintage.