2013 Andretta Brunello di Montalcino 750 ml

Some of our favorite Brunello di Montalcinos are pricey enough that they seem to require a special occasion. Others, lined alongside our Barolos, require a few years of patience and softening before we’re ready to uncork.

That’s why we got so excited about landing this heady, spice-tinged 2013 Andretta release to share with you today. It is that rarest of Tuscan bottles—a critically acclaimed, perfectly cellared Brunello that’s ready to rock ’n’ roll tomorrow alongside a grilled ribeye, yet will only set you back $42 a bottle.

If you love Brunello di Montalcino—especially mouthfilling, lush, muscular expressions—you’ll be accustomed to paying way more for wine of this quality. It’s the kind of bottle that you walk into the wine store hoping for, but rarely find. We can bring it to your doorstep while our 28-case supply lasts.

We’re fairly certain this is the only wine we’ve ever sold that’s made by a philosophy teacher and an aerospace engineer. In 1994, Rosalba Vitanza took a break from Hegel and Kant for a romantic weekend escape to Montalcino with her husband, Guido Andretta, who ran an aerospace consulting business. They ended up buying a half-acre of vines, and Rosalba was soon running Tenuta Vitanza and earning high scores from Wine Spectator.

Guido was always bugging his wife to make his favorite style of Brunello: masculine, rich, with more French oak aging. As a gift for their 10th anniversary, she started a new label for him that would specialize in that style, named Andretta. This flagship Brunello di Montalcino release hails from plots of their now 80-acre property called Wolf Vineyards, located in the Castelnuovo dell’Abate subzone.

This is the hottest region of Montalcino, shielded from easterly winds while exposed to maritime breezes from the west, leading to a style of wine that is big, full-bodied, and dense. It’s a place unique as well for its alternating layers of sandstone and volcanic subsoil, which help supply the terrific mineral and herbal complexity here.

2013 was the vintage that Tuscan winemakers wish every growing season could be, and has produced wines that many collectors have been itching to start opening. Start with this sumptuous 95-pointer. For just $42 a bottle, you can uncork this beauty without a ghost of a regret.