Two Sides of the Same Coin: 2023 and 2024 Rosso di Montalcino

BY ERIC GUIDO | MARCH 17, 2026

Things are never dull in Montalcino these days. Long gone are the years of cool and classic vintages. Instead, the region is faced with unexpected, dramatic climate shifts that force winemakers to be more reactive than proactive. Climate change can manifest as extremely wet seasons or unexpected cold conditions just as often as they do as heat waves and drought. The 2023 and 2024 vintages brought opposite challenges. Are the wines good? Yes, they certainly are. But achieving this level of quality required severe yield reductions in the nail-biting 2023 growing season, and extreme vineyard management and selection in 2024. These two years represent the height of sacrifice and crucial decision-making on the part of producers, but the results are often excellent.

Pian dell'Orino's most recent acquisition of 1.4 hectares of vines overlooks the historic Biondi-Santi winery.

Two thousand twenty-four was also the first year in which winemakers could take advantage of the new Rosso expansion. Approved in June 2024, Montalcino opened up an additional 352 hectares of vineyard for Rosso, bringing the total to 860 hectares. This expansion allows producers to use vineyards previously designated as IGT Sangiovese and Sant’Antimo for Rosso di Montalcino production. What’s more, it permits wineries to dissolve boundaries between Rosso and Brunello vineyards, so that they can decide to use the fruit for one or the other depending on the vintage. The expansion is based on each winery's current production capacity: any producer with less than 10 hectares can increase their Rosso production by 15%, while any producer with 10 to 20 hectares can increase by 15% on their first 10 hectares and by 10% on any additional hectares.

This is a positive development in a region where maturing Sangiovese in oak for two years or more for Brunello di Montalcino doesn’t always make sense in these modern-day vintages. There have been many years where these new rules would have allowed Montalcino wineries to make better wines, such as 2017, 2018, 2020 and likely 2023. Consumers also benefit from greater quantities and better value, especially as the price of Brunello continues to climb.

The contrasts between the 2023 and 2024 vintages are stark, but each offers unique pleasures.

The 2023 Vintage: Exceptionally Unique with Dismal Quantity

I’ve written numerous times about the turbulent 2023 vintage in Italy. Tuscany suffered just as much as the rest of the peninsula, if not more in some cases. Constantly overcast skies, three months of intermittent rain and localized severe hailstorms resulted in disease, as well as a virulent outbreak of both powdery and downy mildew. Conventional practices equipped many wineries with the proper sprays and treatments to ward off the disease, resulting in an estimated yield reduction of around 5% (according to Consorzio President Fabrizio Bindocci). Individual producers shared significantly worse figures, including Sesta di Sopra and SanCarlo at -10%, La Gerla at -15%, Uccelliera at -20%, La Magia at -40%, Donatella Cinelli Colombini at -50% and Sanlorenzo at a shocking -70%. 

Any producer using organic or biodynamic treatments suffered even more damage, as organic sprays washed off the vines as soon as they were applied. Producers questioned how much sulfur and copper they were willing to spray on their vines. Both substances are ultimately unhealthy in large quantities for plants and soils. Once the rain and overcast weather passed, Montalcino then contended with an extremely warm summer. The residual moisture helped vines withstand the heat but also escalated the risk of disease. Rain and cooler conditions from late August into September were the season’s saving grace, but the damage had been done. Harvests were late, and proper selection and sorting were essential to remove mold. Northeastern and western Montalcino suffered more than the south. Wineries with vineyards exclusively in the south or those with the ability to blend fruit from southern vineyards with northern fruit were able to craft more balanced wines. Fabian Schwarz of La Magia stated, “It was one of the most challenging vintages we have faced.”

In general, the 2023s are lightly structured, finessed and mineral-driven, offering an almost old-school feel. Many 2023 Rossos benefited from the inclusion of juice that would have typically gone into a producer’s Brunello. However, this came with a tradeoff: wineries had to choose between making a high-quality Brunello or a superior Rosso with what little fruit they had. The very small number of Rosso submissions I received for review is quite telling of the reduction in quantity. I expect most 2023 Rossos to drink well for three to five years, but I’m sure there will be some happy surprises. Producers like Canalicchio di Sopra, Collemattoni, Livio Sassetti - Pertimali, San Carlo, Sesta di Sopra, Siro Pacenti and Tenuta Le Potazzine made exceptional wines.

Fonterenza's vineyards in the southeast of Montalcino, just north of Castelnuovo dell'Abate.

The 2024 Vintage: High Quantity and Classic Feel

Most of the wines I’ve tasted so far from the 2024 vintage are cool-toned and classic in feel, but the 2024s also run the risk of inconsistency. In actuality, 2024 was not a cool and classic vintage, but the wines make it seem like one. There was more rain than in 2023, but dry spells throughout the spring prevented any significant issues with Peronospora. There was, however, a different problem—budbreak and flowering were so successful that yields were off the charts. Large, swollen bunches required multiple green harvests to maintain quality.

To make matters worse, heatwaves and dry conditions in August halted vine development for weeks. This delayed harvest, for which many wineries were grateful, but it’s a bit more complicated than that. September was unseasonably cold and rainy, further hydrating the berries and pushing pick dates into October. While the late harvest was marked by cooler temperatures and large diurnal shifts that helped maintain acidity, I fear that less scrupulous wineries may have decided to settle for the highest yields possible after the scarcity of 2023. Without conscious selection and elimination of subpar fruit, this could translate into watered-down, lackluster wines made from swollen berries.

The 2024s I’ve tasted so far balance vibrant red fruit with an energetic, racy style and generally lower alcohol. They are easy to drink and refreshing, Rossos to enjoy as Brunello ages in our cellars. The entry-level tier is where the 2024 vintage excels, but where does that leave the more prestigious Rossos? Consumers will vote with their dollars, but it seems that the top-tier Rossos from 2023 may be a safer bet.

The barrel aging room at the Luce winery, in the southwest of Montalcino.

Final Thoughts

In both vintages, the willingness to be selective in the vineyard and adaptive in the cellar was paramount to making high-quality wines. When the 2023 and 2024 Brunellos are released, expect that many will not have produced their single-vineyard (Vigne) and Riserva wines. Shorter macerations and less intrusive oak treatments are gaining popularity among more progressive producers, but any winemaker who follows a cookie-cutter approach and relies solely on tradition with fruit from 2023 and 2024 risks unbalanced Brunellos. Only time will tell.

I tasted the wines for this article in Montalcino in late 2025, with follow-up tastings in our New York office in early 2026.

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