“2015 has been an incredible year so far for Montcalm”, says Michele Ricci, Montcalm’s Executive Vice President, “Our hard work is starting to pay off and the industry is starting to take notice”.
New York, NY (PRWEB) September 08, 2015
A young, dynamic wine importer, Montcalm celebrates another successful year with its tasting event on September 14th. “2015 has been an incredible year so far for Montcalm”, says Michele Ricci, Montcalm’s Executive Vice President, “Our hard work is starting to pay off and the industry is starting to take notice”.
In February 2015, one of Montcalm’s brands, Il Marroneto from Tuscany, received the highest possible rating from one of the leading trade publications, the Wine Advocate: 100 points was given to the 2010 Brunello di Montalcino Selezione Madonna delle Grazie. This is a one-in-a-lifetime experience for both the producer and its importer. Calls started to pour in right away. Until then, Il Marroneto, a traditionally-styled Brunello producer owned by lawyer-turned-vintner Alessandro Mori, was one of those under-the-radar wineries, consistently well-rated but mostly appreciated by aficionados and experts. The stellar rating literally put Il Marroneto, and Montcalm, on the map and provided momentum to the entire portfolio.
Il Marroneto has been with Montcalm since it beginnings in 2010 but it is not the only ‘cherry’ in the portfolio. Alessandro Mori is in good company. Over the past few years the Montcalm team has worked hard to assemble a complete portfolio that offers a full representation of the best categories and wine-making areas of Italy. A number of other leading producers are represented, all sharing the same values of quality, history and passion. There is a story to be told behind every wine.
The Illuminati winery in Abruzzo boasts over 120 years of family wine-making history. Since 1890 they produce several high-quality expressions of the Montepulciano grape. Dino Illuminati is a long-standing advocate for this unique area and was a driving force behind the DOC recognition of this part of Abruzzo. The entry level, single-vineyard Riparosso is a great introduction to Montepulciano and a great value wine. The flagship Riserva Zanna is a celebrated wine, single-vineyard from older vines and a 3 Bicchieri habitue’.
The Poderi Colla family history of winemaking in Piedmont goes back as far as 1703. Beppe Colla was one of the founding fathers of the Alba DOCs in the 1960s and is also considered the father of ‘cru’ wines having been the first to select and vinify the grapes from the great Langhe vineyards separately, naming them on the labels. The ‘modern’ Poderi Colla (literally ‘Colla Farms’) was born in 1994 and is made up of 3 distinct estates that constitute a 360-degree spectrum of the best Piedmont wines which will be showcased at the tasting.
Another Barolo producer, Giovanni Manzone, has recently joined the Montcalm family and will make its official debut at the tasting with its 2010 Barolos from several crus, all rated 94 and above. Giovanni Manzone is small, family-operated winery that produces traditional-style Barolo since 1925 and a great new addition to the Montcalm portfolio.
Cantine Lunae Bosoni, is a highly-awarded winery, possibly the largest in Liguria and a benchmark in the Colli di Luni DOC zone, the easternmost tip of the region. The focus is on Vermentino offered in 2 styles: Etichetta Grigia is all about freshness and aromatic exhuberance, Etichetta Nera is more rich and profound and recipient of the coveted 3-Bicchieri Award by Gambero Rosso for 6 vintages in a row. The red wines are peculiar blends of practically unknown local grape varietals and sangiovese (the winery is located 2 km away from the Tuscan border)
From red, to whites, to bubbles. Franciacorta is one of the hottest up-coming regions, one of Italy’s best kept secrets. Montcalm is proud to introduce Cavalleri, one of the historic names of Franciacorta: their NV Brut Blanc de Blanc is the standard-bearer of their Franciacorta production and it will be launched officially at the tasting, in time for a ‘sparkling’ holiday season!
Part of Montcalm’s core portfolio is represented by the estates owned by Le Tenute di Genagricola, the agricultural branch of the Generali Insurance group (the second largest insurance group in Europe), which is the main shareholder and partner for Montcalm. The Genagricola brands include Tenuta Sant’Anna in Veneto, Bricco dei Guazzi in Piedmont, Poggiobello in Friuli, Solonio in Lazio and La Gregorina in Emilia Romagna. Exciting changes are under way at Genagricola since the arrival of their new CEO Alessandro Marchionne early in 2014. Marchionne is looking to strategically reposition the group’s brands with a fresh new look and by bringing in one of Italy’s most respected and experienced winemakers, Riccardo Cottarella to contribute his specialist knowledge to the group’s vine growing and wine making team.
Other major brands include: Spadafora and Vivera from Sicily; historical estates such as Guicciardini Strozzi and Fattoria di Grignano from Tuscany; Mario Ercolino's own winery Nativ from Campania; Girlan from Alto Adige; family-operated Le Caniette from Le Marche; small organic producer San Martino from the Vulture area of Basilicata.
ABOUT MONTCALM WINE IMPORTERS, LTD.
Montcalm is a young and dynamic wine importer based in New York City. Founded in the fall of 2010, Montcalm distributes its wines directly to New York and New Jersey markets with a team of experienced and passionate salesreps, and nationally through a network of distributors now in over 25 states.
Montcalm Wine Importers Ltd. was founded with a vision of importing into the United States the wines of Le Tenute di Genagricola but has grown in the past few years to include a full-blown portfolio of high quality independent wineries from almost every region of Italy. While the focus remains on Italian wines, the NY/NJ distribution portfolio has been complemented by the addition of a number of boutique wineries from Argentina, France, California, Chile, and South Africa which share the same focus on quality and authenticity.
