2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva
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The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva from Gianni Brunelli hasn't moved an inch since the last time I tasted it in 2021. Tobacco, crushed fall leaves, flowery underbrush and hints of steeped plum, strawberries and cedary spice form its tantalizing bouquet. It’s sweeping and vibrant, silken to the core, with ripe red berry fruits offset by saline minerals and a buzz of zesty acidity. A tinge of citrus embellishes the finale as it tapers off with a liquid floral concentration and a tug of residual tannins, leaving just the faintest nuance of dark earth and sous-bois on the close.
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Antonio Galloni, Vinous
Antonio Galloni, Vinous
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This is pure class as crushed fall leaves, smoke, undergrowth and hints of animal musk waft up from the 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva. With time in the glass, notes of cherry sauce, herbal tea and cedar spice box come to the fore. It’s soft and enveloping, pleasing with its ripe red fruits but also through the mix of minerals and vibrant acidity that lift and energize the expression. There's a sweet citrus component here as well, further enlivening the experience. This is so soft and pleasurable, not completely resolved but still quite giving, as it tapers off only lightly structured to hints of cinnamon and ginger cookie contrasted by inner earth tones.
The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva (from vines in Podernovone) is a magnificent wine. Super-ripe, racy dark raspberries, flowers and sweet spices emerge from this impeccably balanced Brunello. In 2004 the Riserva reveals gorgeous transparency and clarity to match the generous the fruit. The wine's inner sweetness richness and depth are all first-rate, while the firm tannins convey an impression of elegant classicism. The 2004 Riserva shuts down quickly in the glass but the fruit is so primary this should have no trouble aging. Regrettably, I never met Gianni Brunelli and tasting his 2004 Riserva makes me doubly sorry for that.
It is quite interesting to taste the 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva next to the straight Brunello. Here the impression is of total finesse and grace. Floral notes meld into sweet red stone fruits, crushed rose petals, mint and cinnamon form an attractive fabric on the silky, super-expressive finish. In 2004, the two Brunellos are stylistically quite different.