Brunello di Montalcino, Poggio Antico 2016

The 2016 Brunello di Montalcino offers a pure and classic expression of the vintage with bright fruit tones, wild cherry, toasted nut, blue flower and forest floor. Whereas the other wines in the Poggio Antico portfolio undergo aging in smaller tonneaux, this wine is aged in large Slavonian casks instead. You taste the lift and brightness of the fruit, and it's all quite lovely. Grapes are sourced across a 13-hectare site at a very high 500 meters in elevation. The name of this area is I Poggi, and the soils here are a bit lighter and rockier with both schistous galestro and limestone alberese. I love the delicate approach here, the intensity of those floral aromas, and the silky nature of the mouthfeel. Some 34,000 bottles will be released in January 2021. This classic Brunello really stands out. 2024-2042

This is so aromatic and floral with cedar, dried roses, and black cherries. It’s full-bodied, yet so refined and tight with silky tannins and a flavorful finish. Tight and focused. Needs time to open, but shows beautiful finesse and focus. Drink after 2024.

Ruby with a hint of brick at the rim. Smells a little acetic and balsamic. Slightly strange contrast between a touch of vanilla sweetness and then a rather tart, severe fruit profile. When I first tasted this I thought it was rather hard work but when I went back to it, it seemed much better balanced, complex and long. Both sweet and savoury and a complete whole. 2024-2030