Black-cherry, sour-cherry and rose-stem aromas follow through to a medium body with firm tannins and a crisp finish. It’s transparent and clear with a real sense of its vineyards. Better after 2026, when the tannins and acid will have melted together.

There is an earthy note here with iron ore and dusty root to start off the bouquet of the 2018 Brunello di Montalcino. That savory tone cedes to dark fruit, baked plum and a hint of roasted chestnut shell. This wine promotes a unique identity and a special aromatic profile in this vintage. Those earthy or metallic notes are also delivered to the palate, where the wine offers mid-weight density and dusty tannins. This is an ample production of 69,500 bottles.

The 2017 Brunello di Montalcino is characterized by some of those same earthy notes of crushed limestone and baked clay that we saw so clearly in the other two entry-level red wines released by this estate. Wild cherry and dried raspberry cede to oregano, basil or balsam herb. However, overall the fruit intensity is faded. The tannins are on the dry side, and perhaps the heat of the vintage reveals itself there with greater clarity. This wine is best served in the near term. Production is 66,000 bottles.

La Poderina's 2016 Brunello di Montalcino shows a lot of charm and grace, with a bouquet that is defined not so much by the ripeness of its fruit but by the many nuances hidden directly under the surface. The fruit shows lifted red tones with cherry and dried raspberry, but it also offers very precise minerality with crushed limestone and chalk that adds points of dustiness or dryness to the bouquet (and ultimately subtracts from the density of the mouthfeel). These lithe background tones shape what is fundamentally a very elegant, streamlined and pretty Brunello. I am very happy to recommend this new release (with 65,000 bottles to hit the market in March 2021) from La Poderina.

Plum, cherry and leafy underbrush aromas and flavors are joined by flashes of new oak in this red. The attractive flavors are compromised by a woody, dry feel to the tannins. Best from 2023 through 2035. 5,833 cases made, 1,550 cases imported.??–BS??Region: Italy / Brunello di Montalcino Select to Add