San Pio (1999)

About this wine

This vintage combines mostly Cabernet Sauvignon with Sangiovese from Mastrojanni’s San Pio holdings in Montalcino, a site the estate has farmed since the 1970s. The nose opens with concentrated black cherry and plum, then reveals notes of cedar, vanilla and a touch of dried herb. On the palate the wine is full bodied and plush, with ripe dark fruit flavors balanced by firm but integrated tannins and a persistent spicy finish. The texture is dense and slightly leathery with a clear oak influence from extended aging in French oak for roughly 18 months followed by time in larger barrels and bottle before release. The estate typically ferments varieties separately and ages selected lots in wood, practices that help the Cabernet and Sangiovese components keep their individual character while blending into a structured wine.

About the grape

San Pio is built around Cabernet Sauvignon and Sangiovese, with the estate traditionally using about 80 percent Cabernet Sauvignon and 20 percent Sangiovese in this IGT bottling, planting Cabernet on the warmer, lower aspects and Sangiovese on higher, sloping parcels. The Sangiovese at Mastrojanni has a documented local history, growers carried out a mass selection of eight Sangiovese clones on the estate around 2000 to preserve local biotypes and favor structure and acidity, with vines planted between roughly 180 and 420 meters above sea level on soils of tufaceous clay and ancient river pebbles. Cabernet Sauvignon was introduced and managed to bring international structure and color, trained and placed on sites that benefit from the region warm days and cool nights, and it is vinified and aged in larger oak vessels at the estate to integrate with the Sangiovese framework.

Quick facts

• 🍾 The 1999 San Pio comes from Mastrojanni's San Pio parcel, a wine conceived as a Tuscan blend that pairs Cabernet Sauvignon with Sangiovese for a more international style
• 🏛️ This bottle predates the Illy family acquisition in 2008, so it captures Mastrojanni's independent era and early estate philosophy
• 🔬 San Pio was produced in very small quantities compared to the estate Brunelli, historically around a few thousand bottles, making a 1999 now relatively rare
• 🌋 The vineyards that feed San Pio feel the cooling breezes from Mount Amiata, a volcanic landmark that helps give the 1999 vintage lifted aromatics and freshness
• 🌱 Mastrojanni first planted San Pio after acquiring the estate in 1975, so the 1999 shows just over two decades of the winery's early vine age and style evolution

Palate profile

Producer

Mastrojanni, established in 1975 by Gabriele Mastrojanni, is located in Castelnuovo dell’Abate, within the Montalcino municipality of Tuscany, Italy. Recognizing the area's potential, Mastrojanni transformed the San Pio and Loreto estates into vineyards, becoming one of the early producers of Brunello di Montalcino in this region. The estate spans approximately 110 hectares, with 41 hectares dedicated to vine cultivation, situated at altitudes ranging from 180 to 420 meters above sea level. In 2008, the Illy Group acquired Mastrojanni, continuing its legacy of producing high-quality wines that reflect the unique terroir of the area.