Fuligni Brunello di Montalcino 2020 Review

Red cherry, ripe strawberry, tobacco, cocoa, lavender and roses, with spice coming in behind. That’s what I wrote down for the Fuligni Brunello di Montalcino 2020. I tasted it in spring 2025 at La Grande Bellezza in Amsterdam, in a line-up of nine Sangioveses. Of the three Fuligni wines that day, this was the most open.

The estate

Fuligni is a family estate on the northeast side of Montalcino. Giovanni Maria Fuligni ran it until his death in 1971. Since then his daughter Maria Flora, a philosophy graduate, has been in charge. She owns it together with her nephew Roberto Guerrini Fuligni.

The property covers some hundred hectares, but only fourteen of them are vineyard. Most of the vines are in Cottimelli, just outside the town towards Siena, at 380 to 450 metres. Up to and including the 1997 harvest, that name was still on the label: Vigneti dei Cottimelli.

Soil and site

The vineyards face mainly northeast. The subsoil is part of the Eocene Santa Fiora formation: rocky marl. Altitude and aspect usually give a cooler starting point than the warmer south side of Montalcino.

How it’s made

One hundred percent Sangiovese, like every Brunello. The skins stay in the must for about eighteen days, in stainless steel. Most of the wine then ages in traditional Slavonian botti of twenty to thirty hectolitres; about a quarter goes into five-hectolitre tonneaux of French Allier oak.

The Consorzio requires at least two years in wood and four months in bottle. A Brunello can’t go on sale before 1 January of the fifth year after harvest. So the 2020 could reach the shelves from January 2025; I tasted it a few months later.

Tasting Note

Tasting Note

Nose

Warm and elegant. Red cherry and ripe strawberry, then tobacco and cocoa, lavender and roses, with spice.

Quality

A beautiful expression of the vintage.

Next to the rest of the line-up

The same day, the Pian delle Querci Brunello 2020 was on the table. I found that the most classic Brunello of the day: warm cherry, leather, blackberry, plum. The Fuligni is more floral, with lavender and roses where Pian delle Querci goes towards leather and dark fruit.

It was also more open than the house’s Riserva 2019. That one gave little away on the first sip and only came round after decanting.

A second note

My other tasting note, undated, describes a ripe but slender 2020.

Tasting Note

Tasting Note

Nose

Red plum, strawberry, black cherry and mandarin peel.

Palate

Citrus and a touch of ginger. Well-extracted tannins.

Finish

Classic austerity balanced by clear personality.

What to watch for

First, my two notes put the emphasis differently. At La Grande Bellezza it was warm and floral, with tobacco, cocoa and lavender; in the other it was slender, with mandarin peel, citrus and ginger. The same wine doesn’t always show the same side.

Second, the northeast-facing site might suggest a cool, fresh nose. At La Grande Bellezza I noted warm, ripe fruit; my other note calls it ripe but slender. If you want a cool, slender Brunello, taste it before you buy more.

At the table

Think braised meat. At La Grande Bellezza, Nazka served braised beef in Anticuchera sauce, a dish aimed at the Riservas, but its earthiness suits this Brunello too.

Producer

Fuligni, Montalcino

Wine

Brunello di Montalcino DOCG

Vintage

2020

Region

Montalcino (northeast side), Tuscany, Italy

Grape

Sangiovese (100%)

Vineyards

Cottimelli, 380-450 m, rocky marl (Santa Fiora)

Winemaking

About 18 days on skins in stainless steel

Ageing

Slavonian botti of 20-30 hl, about a quarter in 5 hl Allier tonneaux

Sources

• My own tasting notes, including La Grande Bellezza, Amsterdam, spring 2025
• Fuligni (official): fuligni.it
• Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino: consorziobrunellodimontalcino.it, for the Brunello rules