Rosso di Montepulciano DOC The Town's Early-Drinking Sangiovese Red

No. Rosso di Montepulciano is a Sangiovese DOC from the Tuscan town of Montepulciano; Montepulciano d'Abruzzo is a different grape grown in Abruzzo. The shared word is the town's name in one case and the grape's in the other. Our two-Montepulcianos guide covers how to tell every version apart on the shelf.

Same slopes, same Sangiovese, different patience. Vino Nobile is the DOCG: yields capped at 8 tonnes per hectare and at least two years of ageing before release. The Rosso is the DOC: yields to 10 tonnes, no wood requirement, released from the March after harvest, and priced accordingly. Think of it as the town's early-drinking expression rather than a lesser copy.

At least 70% Sangiovese, called Prugnolo Gentile in Montepulciano, with complementary Tuscan varieties allowed up to 30%. That is the same base rule as Vino Nobile, which is why the family resemblance in the glass is so clear.

Young. It is built for its first one to four years, when the sour-cherry fruit and supple tannin are at their freshest. There is no wood-ageing requirement to wait out, so buy the current vintage and open it without ceremony.

Weeknight Italian cooking: pizza, midweek ragu, salumi and young pecorino. The acidity handles tomato better than most reds at the price, and the modest tannin means it does not need a roast to make sense.