Arran Fontalloro Finish

The Fontalloro Finish is one of the more specific named wine cask releases in the Arran catalogue. Where most wine cask finishes reference a regional category like Sauternes, Marsala or Amarone, the Fontalloro release names a single estate and single wine. Fontalloro is the flagship Sangiovese based super Tuscan produced by Fattoria di Felsina at Castelnuovo Berardenga in the Chianti Classico region of Tuscany. The wine has been bottled since the early 1980s and is aged in French oak barriques for around 24 months before release. Arran released this specific cask finish in 2007 from spirit distilled in 1998, with an outturn of 1,944 bottles.

Primary maturation runs in ex Bourbon American oak barrels at Lochranza for the eight year base phase, with secondary transfer into ex Fontalloro French oak barriques for finishing. Bottled in 2007 at 55% without chill filtration and without added colour.

Sangiovese based Tuscan wine cask residue delivers a particular flavour signature distinct from Bordeaux red or Burgundy casks. Sangiovese carries pronounced cherry and red plum ester compounds alongside high natural acidity, with the long French oak ageing contributing structured tannins from ellagitannin extraction. The combined effect with the Bourbon underlay produces a layered profile tracking the original tasting notes: malt extract, nutty, tobacco, citric, coal gas and dried fruit.