SangioFest, Volume III "It's my favourite spot" (Chicago, IL): Still chasing that high from the 2019 bottle at Bebu. This was an excellent bottle, but still not at the level of that legendary bottle. The people at that dinner still talk about it to this day. It's a very typical Cerbaiona with a dark, rustic profile and just the right amount of volatility to accent a fairly ripe and intense wine. Great acidity to balance the very generous fruit here, with again that dusty quality that defines Molinari-era Cerbaiona.
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Same bottle as Melvin. His note captures this wine very well. For added context on the bottle, as it was mine. Opened at 6 pm and left in the fridge standing till 10 pm (first pour), decanted, and finished the bottle at 12:30am (last glass). This needs a good 2 hours in the decanter to show well at the current stage—long, long life ahead, aging more like a 1st growth Bordeaux than other Brunellos.
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Initially thought Nebbiolo from mid-2000s because of the grippy tannins and in spite of its youthful structure. Didn’t rule out Sangiovese since I always confuse the two varietals, but when given a clue that I had the wine before, but not with the person who brought it, I got the wine at first guess which I was quite proud of haha.
Similar impressions to before - incredibly brooding and tannic at first, needed time to coax the perfumed, deep, dark-fruited nose and elegance out. Not as much VA or as pretty as other vintages, but one that is built to last. To me, an absolute masterpiece of a wine that needs more time. Not surprisingly, the last glass was the best (but I left earlier unfortunately).
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Perhaps the slightest, ephemeral pruny note on the palate - but I mention it only for completeness, not because the wine was meaningfully less enjoyable than it ever is. Consistent with previous tasting notes, and still lovely.
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Very crunchy and youthful but with time in the glass revealed gorgeous dark cherry fruit with notes of charred wood and dark spices. Quite structured still and should benefit from further aging. The finish is intense and complex with notes of crunchy minerals and more wood-spice. Very impressive Brunello. 94+
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A stunning brunello. Power balance spice and perfect with past pizza etc. Drank this over three days and I was surprised to see only after a full 72 hours was it starting break down. Perfect wine with a nice decant. Top 5 pct of brunellos I’ve had.
Sangiovese study, Volume II (Chicago, IL): Not quite as impressive as the bottle I had back in 2019 at Bebu (RIP), but still a fantastic bottle of Cerbaiona (the table was evenly split between preferring the 2004 and 2006 -- I preferred the older wine). This has a very dark complexion, with intense black fruit and a classic touch of Cerbaiona volatility. Rustic, backwards tannins with some serious weight on the palate.
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Lunch at Batard: This vintage is so hard to find that I couldn't pass this up when I saw it at a relatively decent price. Was very tight at first so I asked to decant it, and it needed all that time as unfortunately the last glass was the best. Deep, dark-fruited nose that was so perfumed and floral, but not as much VA as the 2008 I had previously. On the palate it had a firm tannic grip but the glorious elegance of Cerbaiona. Quite a picture-perfect wine for me, this definitely can go on for longer than the '08.
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A great intense and powerfull wine that we are very pleased about. We get medium + tannins and acidity - acidity a bit more pronounced - where fine tannins - both are very well integrated and the wine has a very nice balance. The fruit is ripe dark cherries, cranberries plums and black berries. we are also getting both tobacco and leather - also some earthiness and menthol - a good long pronounced aftertaste. The wine is great giving us a lot of complexity and a great balance. We are discussing 94 and 95 and are ending up on 95 - this is my first bottle will be interesting to see what happens when we have the next bottle.
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Beautiful nose of driveway gravel, blended red and black fruit and a bit of rustic soil. Palate was medium bodied+, very nicely balanced acidity and tannins, the latter needing a bit of time to smooth out - showed darker fruit relative to the nose with added minerality. The Richebourg of Montalcino.
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In an 06 horizontal and I thought all of the wines were just too young. Relative to the 04/99 Cerbaoina earlier tonight, this was similar but more brooding. Needs 10-15 years.
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Sangiovese study (Chicago, IL): A pretty textbook bottle of Cerbaiona, even if it didn't feel like it was quite up the standards of a bottle of this I opened a few years ago (which was probably the best bottle of sangiovese that I had ever had up until that point). Like the Cerbaiola (Salvioni), the fruit here is very dark in complexion, but there's a little more lift perhaps thanks to a slight bit of volatility. Again thickly textured, with plenty of sweet fruit. I'd love to revisit this in a more isolated setting to figure out what's going on with this wine.
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Showing a bit of evolution but still in its prime drinking window. This very mineral wine shows limestone (and even some vulcanic impressions), flowers, chicory, cacao and smoke. This juicy wine is very balanced and displays a medium+ and fine acidity. The tannins are still present. A very good Brunello but just not a great one.
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99/01 Brunello Showdown Night. Tasted semi-blind. Drank in Conterno Sensory. Ringer off-theme vintage bottle in the blind. Appearance is clear, medium intensity, ruby going garnet colour. Legs. Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of fragrant dark earth, dark red cherries, leather and meat with more air. Developing. On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium+ alcohol (14%), fine high tannins that end grippy, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of dark red cherries, dark earth, leather, spice, meat. Long grippy structured finish. Very good quality. Lots of power with control here. This Brunello will last more years yet.
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Consistent with last note. This is a special Brunello with plenty of gas left in the tank. Might even get better as the tannins integrate further. Drinking phenomenally well now.
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Big, ripe, nice acidity, really special and delicious. I gave this no time to open up and it’s already great, excited to see how the night unfolds in the glass as I can already sense the improvement after a few minutes of air.
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Spicy Sangiovese, balsam, coffee, intense. It needs to be drunk well chilled or it loses freshness. Still young. Rather acidic. Distinctive and interesting. I paired it with roast tenderloin of bison with red wine (Merlot) sauce but the acidity was too much for the match.
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This wine is spectacular. Must decant for at least 3-5 hours. Built to last and plenty of runway ahead. Will revisit this in 3 years. Powerful, elegant, long finish. Tannins still have plenty of grip and bite, but manageable at this point. Beautiful and getting better!
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July 2018: Had with grilled steak etc. Beautiful wine. Decanted an hour, then poured back in bottle minus one glass and let it evolve there for another 2-3 hours. Drank well after the first hour, and great throughout the night. OK before dinner but calls for food. Elegant, polished, silky, pure Sangiovese fruit, integrated acid and tannin. 96.
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Dark garnet color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of white pepper, black berries and black cherries. Flavors of boysenberries, black cherries and black berries. Bright acidity, medium to firm tannin, full bodied. Drink or hold.
GNO
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Dinner at Pizzeria Bebu (Chicago, IL): The nose is kaleidoscopic, with fruit flavours ranging from tart red cherries to black plums, and behind all of that a fair dose of dusty earth that gives this a sense of backwards rusticity. The palate is a continuation of the complexity and intensity of the nose -- there's ample fruit (though more on the black side of the spectrum here), as well as acidity and tannin to give this a very firm backbone. The tannins are still a touch coarse, and a few more years will probably round off those rough edges. Some air brought out a little bit of volatility, but I think it actually added complexity to an already extremely complex wine. One of the most exciting bottles of red wine I've had in a while.
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Dark garnet color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of berries and leather. Flavors of black berries, raspberries and minerals. Medium to tart acidity, medium tannin, medium to full bodied. Drink or hold.
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Nearly opaque, dense color, garnet, and bright clarity. The nose is earth, minerals, and flowers. The tastes are baking spices, tobacco, and blackberries. The tannins are dry and the finish is sour and spicy.
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Similar showing to the last ones, but a little less expressive. Super finessed, elegant and beautifully silky. Medium-full bodied, with medium+ tannin that is silky, medium-high acidity and very good length. Not an easy place in a large horizontal tasting with plenty of excellent Sangioveses that were often a little denser or heavier. Still stood out for its finesse.
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A really well-done Brunello with delicious flavors of ripe dark cherry fruit and plenty of balancing acidity. Sleek and refined and still fairly structured even though the tannins have ameliorated some. Finishes with a really good mineral crunch and a wonderful licorice note. At USC, NYC with Michael Mendel.
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Brunello Blind night at ES BK. Tasted blind over 3 hours. Appearance is clear, medium intensity, ruby colour. Legs. Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of dark red cherries, black cherries, leather, animal meat, fragrant ethereal earth. Developing. On the palate, dry, very high acidity, medium+ alcohol (14%), high tannins that start smooth but puckering as it flows, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, dark red cherries, black cherries, leather, sweet herbs, spice, meat, earth. Reverberating long finish. Very balanced and complex. Descriptors don't do it justice. Long grand life ahead. Hope to try again in 4+ years' time. Vineyards are located south of Montalcino, next to Salvioni/Cerbaiola.
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Tasted alongside Ms Bubblehead. Fully agreed with her comment. Amazing balance among density, elegance and power. A vintage that will age so well. Based on this tasting, it showed much better than 04. Clearly has upside with further aging.
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Agree with the note below, this was an incredibly performed wine. Decanted 2 hours before drinking, dark cherries, plum, silkiness and smooth tannin, gentle acidity lingering for a long time. If comparing to Soldera, Cerbaiona is elegant but with certain weight, while Soldera in my view is even more feminine. We also had 1997, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012 the same night, 2006 and 1997 were my wines of the night.
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Takes a little bit of time to open up in the glass. Spectacular aromatics of dark cherries, plums, sweet spices, tobacco, also some flowers, cigar, hard candy, sweet raspberries and menthol, also some pine tree and cedar. It's medium-full bodied, dense but weightless at the same time, with medium-high acidity and pretty high tannin that is incredibly silky. Excellent length. A superb Brunello and an incredibly perfumed, fresh, and silkly expression of Brunello.... wow. Another stunning showing!
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Ranked after 06 Soldera and 06 Poggio di Sotti. Slow ox 24 hours. Highly aromatic and quite complex. Layered palate with lots of smokiness, earthiness, concentrated red fruits but not overripe. Long. An excellent and faultless wine but not as expressive in style.
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So, we were planning to have this at our local fave Italian place, but upon arrival, the place was sold out for an event. Busted! So, mediterranean food instead. You know what? It didn't matter. Pop and pour? Still didn't matter. In the glass, auburn-tinted red at the rim, shading to deep, saturated blue-black at the core. On the nose, cherries, smoke, and crushed stone fruit. On the palate, plums, cherries, anise, and a faint hint of mint. Will this get better with a few years? Yes. But this was more than approachable now, and once again, Cerbaiona delivers the goods.
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Beautiful nose of cherry cough syrub and minty spices. Quite full on the palate with absolutely delicious medicinal black cherry fruit which comes in waves. This is a very finely dense wine with great intensity and freshness. The finish is still firm and tannic but with excellent concentration and building complexity with notes of red spice, licorice, eucalyptus and horse leathers. Balanced and still quite young but drinkable tonight because of the outrageously ripe and stunning fruit. Decanted for 2 hours before consumption. 94+
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A stunning Brunello that is suprisingly drinking beautifully now with an incredible core of dark cherry fruit and good balancing acidity. Silky and refined with excellent intensity and precision. Medium-bodied but finely dense and it builds to a phenomenally complex and concentrated finish with notes of licorice, minerals, forest floor and red spice. I now put this wine in the #2 position in terms of the best Brunello's just behind Soldera.
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Lovely mahagony-tinted red. Absolutely delicious with a fantastic nose of ripe blackberries and forest loam, beeswax, caramel... And quite balanced on the palate, with ripe fruit but lifted by substantial acidity and a lingering minerality. Bought three more as soon as I tried it. So at age 10 this still has a very positive evolution but is clearly entering a window of very enjoyable drinking.
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Hard to believe but from my perspective this was another step up from the Marroneto "Madonna delle Grazie" 2010 we tasted next to it. Still young and reticent but incredibly complex and elegant notes of dark red cherries, strawberries, tobacco, dried fruits, cigar, cedar wood and some pine tree. With some more air also some menthol notes developped. It's full-bodied and dense, but feels super weightless at the same time (like a top-notch Burgundy), has medium-high acidity and high but super silky tannin adding some grip. Great length and a super complex finish. An incredibly beautiful, silky, elegant and almost Burgundian Brunello. It left me speechless... (99+)
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Medium garnet/brick, light in color. Nose of pine tree, roses, strawberry with flowers and a bit of oak as well as touch of horse saddle. Enters the palate fruity and light bodied at first but with great mid mouth feeling at the same time and a superb, sappy finish. Light yet present, fruity yet astringent. Cerbaiona is one of this wines that can "square the circle" by combining opposite poles, Musigny in style. Weightless but so much aroma and at the end with a refreshing finish. Even better than the superb 2007. I would drink the 2007 now and give the 2006 2-3 more years. As it sits in the glass it gets better and better.
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Dark ruby. Black cherry, anise, sweet spices on the nose, with a bit of underlying oak. Bright jammy fruit on the palate, a hint of cola, brine cured olives, some alcohol heat at the back, long acid finish. A dark and seductive wine. 50+17+15+7. [Interesting, it's not often that I have a rating so out of whack with the consensus.]
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Brunello Tasting (Enoteca Singapore): Bright ruby red, expressive and darker nose showing blackberry and dark cherry. It has more prominent toasty oak than the Poggio di Sotto BdM Riserva but well balance by ample fruits. This was also tight on palate, good freshness with plenty of dark fruits but not showing much of complexity. Lots of ripe tannins at the aftertaste.
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Italy 2012; 10/6/2012-10/23/2012: Tasted at fort in Montalcino Not a lot of nose. Some fruit, too much tannin. Beautiful Wife likes I put 90 points on it, but I'm not sure where that came from after reading my note...
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Brunello 2006 Horisontal Tasting: Amazingly charming nose with roses, cherry and raspberry leaves. Very complex nose. Wow and Wow on the palate! Extremely charming and in great balance with a solid structure. Nice solid cherry/raspberry fruit. Very long aftertaste that is complex and still in just a perfect balance. A very impressive wine!!!
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4/27/2024 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
SangioFest, Volume III "It's my favourite spot" (Chicago, IL): Still chasing that high from the 2019 bottle at Bebu. This was an excellent bottle, but still not at the level of that legendary bottle. The people at that dinner still talk about it to this day. It's a very typical Cerbaiona with a dark, rustic profile and just the right amount of volatility to accent a fairly ripe and intense wine. Great acidity to balance the very generous fruit here, with again that dusty quality that defines Molinari-era Cerbaiona.
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2/18/2024 - Dibbs Likes this wine: 94 Points
Same bottle as Melvin. His note captures this wine very well. For added context on the bottle, as it was mine. Opened at 6 pm and left in the fridge standing till 10 pm (first pour), decanted, and finished the bottle at 12:30am (last glass). This needs a good 2 hours in the decanter to show well at the current stage—long, long life ahead, aging more like a 1st growth Bordeaux than other Brunellos.
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2/17/2024 - melvinyeowq wrote: 95 Points
Initially thought Nebbiolo from mid-2000s because of the grippy tannins and in spite of its youthful structure. Didn’t rule out Sangiovese since I always confuse the two varietals, but when given a clue that I had the wine before, but not with the person who brought it, I got the wine at first guess which I was quite proud of haha.
Similar impressions to before - incredibly brooding and tannic at first, needed time to coax the perfumed, deep, dark-fruited nose and elegance out. Not as much VA or as pretty as other vintages, but one that is built to last. To me, an absolute masterpiece of a wine that needs more time. Not surprisingly, the last glass was the best (but I left earlier unfortunately).
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1/8/2024 - jshufelt wrote: 94 Points
Perhaps the slightest, ephemeral pruny note on the palate - but I mention it only for completeness, not because the wine was meaningfully less enjoyable than it ever is. Consistent with previous tasting notes, and still lovely.
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9/24/2023 - dream Likes this wine: 94 Points
Very crunchy and youthful but with time in the glass revealed gorgeous dark cherry fruit with notes of charred wood and dark spices. Quite structured still and should benefit from further aging. The finish is intense and complex with notes of crunchy minerals and more wood-spice. Very impressive Brunello. 94+
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8/26/2023 - VINNICK Likes this wine: 95 Points
A stunning brunello. Power balance spice and perfect with past pizza etc. Drank this over three days and I was surprised to see only after a full 72 hours was it starting break down. Perfect wine with a nice decant. Top 5 pct of brunellos I’ve had.
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5/20/2023 - acyso wrote: 95 Points
Sangiovese study, Volume II (Chicago, IL): Not quite as impressive as the bottle I had back in 2019 at Bebu (RIP), but still a fantastic bottle of Cerbaiona (the table was evenly split between preferring the 2004 and 2006 -- I preferred the older wine). This has a very dark complexion, with intense black fruit and a classic touch of Cerbaiona volatility. Rustic, backwards tannins with some serious weight on the palate.
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3/28/2023 - jshufelt wrote: 94 Points
Consistent with previous tasting notes.
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2/20/2023 - Vinogan(s) wrote: flawed
Oxidized :(
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2/18/2023 - Kris G wrote: flawed
Showing so much evolution that it was undrinkable.
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12/23/2022 - melvinyeowq wrote: 95 Points
Lunch at Batard: This vintage is so hard to find that I couldn't pass this up when I saw it at a relatively decent price. Was very tight at first so I asked to decant it, and it needed all that time as unfortunately the last glass was the best. Deep, dark-fruited nose that was so perfumed and floral, but not as much VA as the 2008 I had previously. On the palate it had a firm tannic grip but the glorious elegance of Cerbaiona. Quite a picture-perfect wine for me, this definitely can go on for longer than the '08.
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11/12/2022 - ILarsen wrote: 95 Points
A great intense and powerfull wine that we are very pleased about. We get medium + tannins and acidity - acidity a bit more pronounced - where fine tannins - both are very well integrated and the wine has a very nice balance. The fruit is ripe dark cherries, cranberries plums and black berries. we are also getting both tobacco and leather - also some earthiness and menthol - a good long pronounced aftertaste. The wine is great giving us a lot of complexity and a great balance. We are discussing 94 and 95 and are ending up on 95 - this is my first bottle will be interesting to see what happens when we have the next bottle.
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8/15/2022 - Ms. Bubblehead Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beautiful nose of driveway gravel, blended red and black fruit and a bit of rustic soil. Palate was medium bodied+, very nicely balanced acidity and tannins, the latter needing a bit of time to smooth out - showed darker fruit relative to the nose with added minerality. The Richebourg of Montalcino.
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4/23/2022 - Nanda wrote:
In an 06 horizontal and I thought all of the wines were just too young. Relative to the 04/99 Cerbaoina earlier tonight, this was similar but more brooding. Needs 10-15 years.
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4/23/2022 - acyso wrote: 93 Points
Sangiovese study (Chicago, IL): A pretty textbook bottle of Cerbaiona, even if it didn't feel like it was quite up the standards of a bottle of this I opened a few years ago (which was probably the best bottle of sangiovese that I had ever had up until that point). Like the Cerbaiola (Salvioni), the fruit here is very dark in complexion, but there's a little more lift perhaps thanks to a slight bit of volatility. Again thickly textured, with plenty of sweet fruit. I'd love to revisit this in a more isolated setting to figure out what's going on with this wine.
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4/2/2022 - ddemas wrote: 95 Points
Stunning!
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1/1/2022 - Kris G wrote: 93 Points
Showing a bit of evolution but still in its prime drinking window. This very mineral wine shows limestone (and even some vulcanic impressions), flowers, chicory, cacao and smoke. This juicy wine is very balanced and displays a medium+ and fine acidity. The tannins are still present. A very good Brunello but just not a great one.
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12/28/2021 - Derek Darth Taster wrote: 95 Points
99/01 Brunello Showdown Night. Tasted semi-blind. Drank in Conterno Sensory. Ringer off-theme vintage bottle in the blind.
Appearance is clear, medium intensity, ruby going garnet colour. Legs.
Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of fragrant dark earth, dark red cherries, leather and meat with more air. Developing.
On the palate, dry, high acidity, medium+ alcohol (14%), fine high tannins that end grippy, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, with flavours of dark red cherries, dark earth, leather, spice, meat. Long grippy structured finish.
Very good quality. Lots of power with control here. This Brunello will last more years yet.
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12/28/2021 - Vinogan(s) Likes this wine: 93 Points
Dark fruit, great balance, finesse and elegancefrom beginning to end, a slight sweet touch. Great bottle, lovely style of brunello
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10/8/2021 - jshufelt wrote: 94 Points
Consistent with previous tasting notes.
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5/15/2021 - VINNICK Likes this wine: 95 Points
Consistent with last note. This is a special Brunello with plenty of gas left in the tank. Might even get better as the tannins integrate further. Drinking phenomenally well now.
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1/7/2021 - jshufelt wrote: 94 Points
Consistent with previous tasting notes.
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11/8/2020 - joshabramson Likes this wine: 96 Points
Big, ripe, nice acidity, really special and delicious. I gave this no time to open up and it’s already great, excited to see how the night unfolds in the glass as I can already sense the improvement after a few minutes of air.
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4/24/2020 - sdr Likes this wine: 91 Points
Spicy Sangiovese, balsam, coffee, intense. It needs to be drunk well chilled or it loses freshness. Still young. Rather acidic. Distinctive and interesting. I paired it with roast tenderloin of bison with red wine (Merlot) sauce but the acidity was too much for the match.
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4/12/2020 - VINNICK Likes this wine: 95 Points
This wine is spectacular. Must decant for at least 3-5 hours. Built to last and plenty of runway ahead. Will revisit this in 3 years. Powerful, elegant, long finish. Tannins still have plenty of grip and bite, but manageable at this point. Beautiful and getting better!
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2/17/2020 - elyaz wrote: 96 Points
July 2018: Had with grilled steak etc. Beautiful wine. Decanted an hour, then poured back in bottle minus one glass and let it evolve there for another 2-3 hours. Drank well after the first hour, and great throughout the night. OK before dinner but calls for food. Elegant, polished, silky, pure Sangiovese fruit, integrated acid and tannin. 96.
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1/14/2020 - jshufelt wrote: 94 Points
Consistent with our last bottle from Sep 2017 - perhaps a shade more muted than I recall from that prior bottle, but still lovely.
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11/6/2019 - wineismylife wrote: 92 Points
WIML92
Dark garnet color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of white pepper, black berries and black cherries. Flavors of boysenberries, black cherries and black berries. Bright acidity, medium to firm tannin, full bodied. Drink or hold.
GNO
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6/17/2019 - acyso wrote: 98 Points
Dinner at Pizzeria Bebu (Chicago, IL): The nose is kaleidoscopic, with fruit flavours ranging from tart red cherries to black plums, and behind all of that a fair dose of dusty earth that gives this a sense of backwards rusticity. The palate is a continuation of the complexity and intensity of the nose -- there's ample fruit (though more on the black side of the spectrum here), as well as acidity and tannin to give this a very firm backbone. The tannins are still a touch coarse, and a few more years will probably round off those rough edges. Some air brought out a little bit of volatility, but I think it actually added complexity to an already extremely complex wine. One of the most exciting bottles of red wine I've had in a while.
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5/6/2019 - wineismylife wrote: 92 Points
WIML92
Tasted non blind.
Dark garnet color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of berries and leather. Flavors of black berries, raspberries and minerals. Medium to tart acidity, medium tannin, medium to full bodied. Drink or hold.
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4/3/2019 - hackey37 Likes this wine: 91 Points
Nearly opaque, dense color, garnet, and bright clarity. The nose is earth, minerals, and flowers. The tastes are baking spices, tobacco, and blackberries. The tannins are dry and the finish is sour and spicy.
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1/25/2019 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 96 Points
Similar showing to the last ones, but a little less expressive. Super finessed, elegant and beautifully silky. Medium-full bodied, with medium+ tannin that is silky, medium-high acidity and very good length. Not an easy place in a large horizontal tasting with plenty of excellent Sangioveses that were often a little denser or heavier. Still stood out for its finesse.
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1/17/2019 - Montana Likes this wine: 95 Points
This is a brilliant wine. I wish Diego Molinari were 20 years younger and still owned this fantastic winery.
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12/15/2018 - Al man wrote:
$$250 bottle from Abe White at Xmas party 2018
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9/14/2018 - dream Likes this wine: 94 Points
A really well-done Brunello with delicious flavors of ripe dark cherry fruit and plenty of balancing acidity. Sleek and refined and still fairly structured even though the tannins have ameliorated some. Finishes with a really good mineral crunch and a wonderful licorice note. At USC, NYC with Michael Mendel.
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7/25/2018 - Derek Darth Taster Likes this wine: 96 Points
Brunello Blind night at ES BK. Tasted blind over 3 hours.
Appearance is clear, medium intensity, ruby colour. Legs.
Nose is clean, medium+ intensity, with aromas of dark red cherries, black cherries, leather, animal meat, fragrant ethereal earth. Developing.
On the palate, dry, very high acidity, medium+ alcohol (14%), high tannins that start smooth but puckering as it flows, full body. Medium+ flavour intensity, dark red cherries, black cherries, leather, sweet herbs, spice, meat, earth. Reverberating long finish. Very balanced and complex. Descriptors don't do it justice.
Long grand life ahead. Hope to try again in 4+ years' time.
Vineyards are located south of Montalcino, next to Salvioni/Cerbaiola.
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7/2/2018 - Burgnick Likes this wine: 94 Points
Tasted alongside Ms Bubblehead. Fully agreed with her comment. Amazing balance among density, elegance and power. A vintage that will age so well. Based on this tasting, it showed much better than 04. Clearly has upside with further aging.
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7/1/2018 - Ms. Bubblehead Likes this wine:
Agree with the note below, this was an incredibly performed wine. Decanted 2 hours before drinking, dark cherries, plum, silkiness and smooth tannin, gentle acidity lingering for a long time. If comparing to Soldera, Cerbaiona is elegant but with certain weight, while Soldera in my view is even more feminine. We also had 1997, 2004, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012 the same night, 2006 and 1997 were my wines of the night.
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12/6/2017 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 98 Points
Takes a little bit of time to open up in the glass. Spectacular aromatics of dark cherries, plums, sweet spices, tobacco, also some flowers, cigar, hard candy, sweet raspberries and menthol, also some pine tree and cedar. It's medium-full bodied, dense but weightless at the same time, with medium-high acidity and pretty high tannin that is incredibly silky. Excellent length. A superb Brunello and an incredibly perfumed, fresh, and silkly expression of Brunello.... wow. Another stunning showing!
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10/2/2017 - KPB wrote:
This particular bottle seems a bit shrill: fruit is a little more faded than I had hoped. Perhaps heat along the way before it reached me?
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9/24/2017 - wineappellation Likes this wine: 95 Points
Ranked after 06 Soldera and 06 Poggio di Sotti. Slow ox 24 hours. Highly aromatic and quite complex. Layered palate with lots of smokiness, earthiness, concentrated red fruits but not overripe. Long. An excellent and faultless wine but not as expressive in style.
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9/20/2017 - jshufelt wrote: 95 Points
So, we were planning to have this at our local fave Italian place, but upon arrival, the place was sold out for an event. Busted! So, mediterranean food instead. You know what? It didn't matter. Pop and pour? Still didn't matter. In the glass, auburn-tinted red at the rim, shading to deep, saturated blue-black at the core. On the nose, cherries, smoke, and crushed stone fruit. On the palate, plums, cherries, anise, and a faint hint of mint. Will this get better with a few years? Yes. But this was more than approachable now, and once again, Cerbaiona delivers the goods.
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1/19/2017 - dream Likes this wine: 94 Points
Beautiful nose of cherry cough syrub and minty spices. Quite full on the palate with absolutely delicious medicinal black cherry fruit which comes in waves. This is a very finely dense wine with great intensity and freshness. The finish is still firm and tannic but with excellent concentration and building complexity with notes of red spice, licorice, eucalyptus and horse leathers. Balanced and still quite young but drinkable tonight because of the outrageously ripe and stunning fruit. Decanted for 2 hours before consumption. 94+
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5/26/2016 - dream Likes this wine: 95 Points
A stunning Brunello that is suprisingly drinking beautifully now with an incredible core of dark cherry fruit and good balancing acidity. Silky and refined with excellent intensity and precision. Medium-bodied but finely dense and it builds to a phenomenally complex and concentrated finish with notes of licorice, minerals, forest floor and red spice. I now put this wine in the #2 position in terms of the best Brunello's just behind Soldera.
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3/2/2016 - KPB wrote: 97 Points
Lovely mahagony-tinted red. Absolutely delicious with a fantastic nose of ripe blackberries and forest loam, beeswax, caramel... And quite balanced on the palate, with ripe fruit but lifted by substantial acidity and a lingering minerality. Bought three more as soon as I tried it. So at age 10 this still has a very positive evolution but is clearly entering a window of very enjoyable drinking.
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10/10/2015 - wineduggery wrote: 92 Points
Needs a couple of hours of decanting if you want to drink it young.
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7/3/2015 - NostraBacchus Likes this wine: 99 Points
Hard to believe but from my perspective this was another step up from the Marroneto "Madonna delle Grazie" 2010 we tasted next to it. Still young and reticent but incredibly complex and elegant notes of dark red cherries, strawberries, tobacco, dried fruits, cigar, cedar wood and some pine tree. With some more air also some menthol notes developped. It's full-bodied and dense, but feels super weightless at the same time (like a top-notch Burgundy), has medium-high acidity and high but super silky tannin adding some grip. Great length and a super complex finish. An incredibly beautiful, silky, elegant and almost Burgundian Brunello. It left me speechless... (99+)
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7/1/2015 - Collector1855 wrote: 96 Points
Medium garnet/brick, light in color. Nose of pine tree, roses, strawberry with flowers and a bit of oak as well as touch of horse saddle. Enters the palate fruity and light bodied at first but with great mid mouth feeling at the same time and a superb, sappy finish. Light yet present, fruity yet astringent. Cerbaiona is one of this wines that can "square the circle" by combining opposite poles, Musigny in style. Weightless but so much aroma and at the end with a refreshing finish. Even better than the superb 2007. I would drink the 2007 now and give the 2006 2-3 more years. As it sits in the glass it gets better and better.
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12/21/2014 - wgmccallum Likes this wine: 89 Points
Dark ruby. Black cherry, anise, sweet spices on the nose, with a bit of underlying oak. Bright jammy fruit on the palate, a hint of cola, brine cured olives, some alcohol heat at the back, long acid finish. A dark and seductive wine. 50+17+15+7. [Interesting, it's not often that I have a rating so out of whack with the consensus.]
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8/24/2013 - hkm520240 wrote: 92 Points
Brunello Tasting (Enoteca Singapore): Bright ruby red, expressive and darker nose showing blackberry and dark cherry. It has more prominent toasty oak than the Poggio di Sotto BdM Riserva but well balance by ample fruits.
This was also tight on palate, good freshness with plenty of dark fruits but not showing much of complexity. Lots of ripe tannins at the aftertaste.
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2/15/2013 - hubas wrote: 90 Points
Dark and intense aroma with black cherries in the powerful attack.
The balance of the wine is very nice with a very interesting after taste.
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10/16/2012 - BrunelloBob wrote: 90 Points
Italy 2012; 10/6/2012-10/23/2012: Tasted at fort in Montalcino
Not a lot of nose. Some fruit, too much tannin.
Beautiful Wife likes
I put 90 points on it, but I'm not sure where that came from after reading my note...
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11/11/2011 - canan wrote: 98 Points
Brunello 2006 Horisontal Tasting: Amazingly charming nose with roses, cherry and raspberry leaves. Very complex nose.
Wow and Wow on the palate! Extremely charming and in great balance with a solid structure. Nice solid cherry/raspberry fruit. Very long aftertaste that is complex and still in just a perfect balance.
A very impressive wine!!!
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