The Brancaia 2019 Ilatraia is an organic blend of 40% Petit Verdot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc aged in French barrique for 18 months, half of which is new oak. This is a generous and deeply layered expression with dark fruit, baker's chocolate and elegant spice. I tasted this wine next to the 2018 vintage, which clearly showed more balance given that extra year of aging. Based on that observation, I suggest an extended drinking window for this wine. The 2019 shows lots of primary fruit brightness and concentration. Production is 40,000 bottles.

This is a seriously gorgeous wine, seriously. The Brancaia 2018 Ilatraia is 40% Petit Verdot, 40% Cabernet Sauvignon and 20% Cabernet Franc, and it impresses from the start, thanks to the wonderful intensity and clarity of its dark fruit, spice and delicately toasted aromas. This full-bodied wine does a terrific job of presenting an Italian or clearly Mediterranean side of the blend with rosemary, dried lavender bud and some of the warm earthy aromas that remind me of walking through a grove of chestnut trees in the fall. This offers a twofold punch of power and elegance. 40,000 bottles were released.

A blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and Cabernet Franc, the 2017 Ilatraia is a real beauty and one of the only wines that has taken on the challenges of this hot and dry vintage with undisputed results. Ilatraia opens to an inky dark appearance and thick phenolic weight that is given extra volume and depth thanks to layers of cherry, dried blackberry and plum. This is a full-bodied red wine worthy of a big Fiorentina steak.

A blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Petit Verdot and 20% Cabernet Franc, the 2016 Ilatraia is a terrific, full-bodied expression from Tuscany. If you love this combination of full-throttle grapes, I suggest you try this rendition. It tends to be more delicate and nuanced at the edges compared to a similar blend from a New World wine region, like say, California. The wine is contoured and full but never heavy. Indeed, the aromas of blackberry, spice and tar remain surprisingly fresh and bright. This is a big wine to be sure, but there is a lot of tonic energy packed tight within. Some 30,000 bottles were made.

The 2015 Ilatraia is a drop-dead gorgeous blend of 40% Cabernet Sauvignon, 40% Petit Verdot and 20% Cabernet Franc with all fruit coming from Brancaia's Maremma vineyards along the Tuscan coast. This warm vintage has shaped an exuberant and intense red wine that hits the palate with lavish richness. The complex bouquet is composed of dark fruit elements that are contrasted seamlessly against spice, sweet tobacco and campfire ash. Yet the mouthfeel is never too heavy or overextracted. There's a lot to enjoy here. Some 45,000 bottles were made.