2019 Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto

A saturated red/black color, the 2019 Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva Cerretalto is a much more sanguine and mineral-toned wine, with aromas of iron, dark plum, toasted rosemary, pine, and black cherries. It's very structured but also very well-integrated. with a supple and polished feel tying it all together. It's long on the palate and floats away with a long finish. This very impressive and noble wine is going to age very slowly over the coming decades.

Wow. Seductive aromas of slate, violets and black cherries as well as some graphite and cedar. Full-bodied, this has incredible depth, intensity and purity, building on the palate with focused fruit and pronounced tannins. Goes on for minutes. A wine for the long run. Best of the vintage? Try after 2029.

The Casanova di Neri 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto (with the black label) opens to medium-plus concentration, dark fruit, ferrous earth and black licorice. You get a lot of detail on the bouquet. This is a big wine with all muscle and no fat. It concludes with smoky barbecue, cola and pressed blue flower. These ethereal aromas appear only after the wine has been in the glass for a while. Rich concentration wraps over the palate but imparts no residual heaviness. This wine has great capacity to age, but I love Cerretalto when its primary fruit is still apparent (10 to 20 years in). Production is 9,700 bottles. The Cerretalto will not be made in 2020.