The 2020 Nardo is a blend of 70% Sangiovese, 15% Malvasia Nera and 15% Cabernet Sauvignon (with 4,200 bottles released). This wine has an inky core of black fruit with grilled rosemary or curry leaf at the back. You get elegant mineral tones that recall pencil shaving or even a hint of rusty iron. The palate is dry and quite firm with both fruit and oak tannins. Again, this hot vintage delivers high alcohol, measured at 15%.

Made with 65% Sangiovese, 25% Malvasia Nera, 5% Montepulciano and 5% Alicante, the Montepeloso 2019 Nardo shows savory notes of spice and tobacco that are expertly layered into black fruit, dried blackberry and baked plum. There is a soft, almost sweet side to the fruit, but the mouthfeel is quite structured and firm thank to the tannins and the abundant fruit weight layered within. I do notice the 15% alcohol. Some 3,400 bottles were released.

Here is a generous and nicely concentrated blend from the Tuscan Coast. Featuring 45% Sangiovese, 20% Montepulciano, 20% Alicante and 15% Malvasia Nera, the wine opens to a dark and impenetrable appearance. The 2018 Nardo is a small and precious production with only 1,900 bottles made. It is sultry, extracted and velvety, but it also shows impeccable balance. The Montepeloso team shows real talent when it comes to experimenting and perfecting these offbeat blends, and I cannot imagine any other estate presenting such seamless results using these specific vinous building blocks. Dark fruit, cacao, cedar, cigar box and warm notes of soil or forest floor lift gently from the bouquet. This is a real beauty.

Montepulciano is blended with Sangiovese and Marselan to make up the 2015 Nardo. Compared to the other new releases from Montepeloso, this wine is more direct and vertical in terms of its aromatic presentation. The aromas rise from the glass with dark cherry, cassis and blackberry preserves. There is ample spice, tobacco and leather at the back. Those aromas help to create a sense of volume and weight. This is a beautiful wine from the sunny Tuscan Coast.

Montepeloso's 2012 Nardo sees Montepulciano blended with Sangiovese and Marselan. Again, the integration is seamless. This is a timeless quality seen across these new releases. The bouquet here is tightly knit together with wild berry followed by dried cherry, blackberry, leather and Indian spice. Nothing is out of place. In the mouth, the wine is silky and polished. Yet, it also shows great momentum and power. Not the easiest vintage, this wine does a great job of presenting the best attributes of 2012 on Coastal Tuscany.