($150) Good deep medium red. Initially very reduced nose opened somewhat with aeration to show strawberry, raspberry and minerals, along with a lightly stewy quality. Then broad, powerful, deep and dry but youthfully imploded and unyielding in the mouth. The very tannic finish shows a saline element but also a piquant note of blood orange. A cipher today, and in need of a lot of patience. (Shaw-Ross International, Miramar, FL)

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Biondi-Santi's 2004 Brunello di Montalcino is an intriguing wine. Silky, refined tannins frame a core of perfumed dark red fruits as this compact, linear Brunello opens up in the glass. This medium-bodied Brunello is in need of serious bottle age, but the potential seems for the wine to develop nicely over the coming years. The estate's 2004 is not a blockbuster, but rather a delicate, ethereal style of Brunello. It is also one of the finer wines made from this part of Montalcino in 2004.

Professional content appears courtesy of Vinfolio

Professional content appears courtesy of Vinfolio