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Badia a Coltibuono, Tuscany,
Ready, but will keep,
This limited parcel of mature Chianti Classico Riserva comes from a bastion of traditionalism, Badia a Coltibuono. After a long fermentation, the wine is aged for two years in traditional Austrian and French oak. It is complex yet extremely fresh, with bright strawberry and wild cherry fruit on the nose, alongside herbs, leather and forest oor notes.
Lisini, Tuscany,
Ready, but will keep,
Richer, more obvious in its fleshy, raspberry charm, this is very inviting, sensual, creamy even. Darker and broader in colour, the palate is generous and sumptuous, with an almost raspberry-ripple richness. The texture is one of crushed velvet, of sweet currants and heady fruit; in a word – lush.
One of Montalcino’s oldest estates, dating back to the time of the Medicis, Lisini is known more recently as one of the founding fathers of the Brunello di Montalcino Consorzio of the 1960s. The Clementi-Lisini family, at the 154-hectare property near Sant’Angelo in Colle (20 hectares are under vine), make a thoroughly traditional range that builds on ancient Eocene sand, clay and iron-rich soils; wines that were first bottled in 1967. Oenologist Filippo Paoletti stands guard over the estate’s pre-eminent position.
One of Montalcino’s oldest estates, dating back to the time of the Medicis, Lisini is known more recently as one of the founding fathers of the Brunello di Montalcino Consorzio of the 1960s. The Clementi-Lisini family, at the 154-hectare property near Sant’Angelo in Colle (20 hectares are under vine), make a thoroughly traditional range that builds on ancient Eocene sand, clay and iron-rich soils; wines that were first bottled in 1967. Oenologist Filippo Paoletti stands guard over the estate’s pre-eminent position.
Lisini, Tuscany,
Ready, but will keep,
Not actually a Riserva Brunello, Ugolaia's brilliance stems from the fruit of 40-year-old vines in a single vineyard, which spends an extra six months in a chestnut barrel prior to bottling. Compared to the Riserva, Ugolaia is less obviously sensual but more refined. There's a cleansing raspberry-coulis and mulberry character; it's limpid, crunchy, naturally harmonious and not in anyway forced - the product of an excellent vineyard and gentle handling. This is exquisite; not a heavyweight, it's more refined and delicate in 2009.
One of Montalcino’s oldest estates, dating back to the time of the Medicis, Lisini is known more recently as one of the founding fathers of the Brunello di Montalcino Consorzio of the 1960s. The Clementi-Lisini family, at the 154-hectare property near Sant’Angelo in Colle (20 hectares are under vine), make a thoroughly traditional range that builds on ancient Eocene sand, clay and iron-rich soils; wines that were first bottled in 1967. Oenologist Filippo Paoletti stands guard over the estate’s pre-eminent position.
One of Montalcino’s oldest estates, dating back to the time of the Medicis, Lisini is known more recently as one of the founding fathers of the Brunello di Montalcino Consorzio of the 1960s. The Clementi-Lisini family, at the 154-hectare property near Sant’Angelo in Colle (20 hectares are under vine), make a thoroughly traditional range that builds on ancient Eocene sand, clay and iron-rich soils; wines that were first bottled in 1967. Oenologist Filippo Paoletti stands guard over the estate’s pre-eminent position.
Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
Crushed flowers, tobacco, mint, licorice and dried cherries lift from the glass in Pira's 2009 Barolo Pira Vecchie Viti. Interestingly, within Roagna's range the old vines in Pajè confer power, but here they seem to add finesse. Sweet tobacco, menthol and worn-in leather add nuance on the open, expressive finish. The 2009 Pira Vecchie Viti is a bit more forward than the straight Barolo Pira. It will be interesting to see how both wines age.
Antonio Galloni - vinousmedia.com - Sept 2014
Antonio Galloni - vinousmedia.com - Sept 2014
Roagna, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
It is fascinating to see how site and soil composure can play such a role is determining the fruit character and quality of the final wine. Roagna’s 0.22 hectare plot in Asili sits high up on a well-ventilated, sand and limestone site overlooking the river Tanaro below, which combines to give us a beautifully fine, scented, spicy red fruit nose, all prim and pretty, with prefect poise. Harvested on the 10th October 2009, it’s packed with intricately detailed groseille (red currant) essence fruit and pulsates with exciting energy. Very fine.
David Berry Green
Luca Roagna has captured the pure essence of one of Barbaresco’s aristocratic vineyards. This is the Musigny of Barbaresco, with the 50-plus year old vines producing a wine with an ethereal cherry and raspberry-infused nose. The wine has a powerful grace to it, with a sense of the sweet red fruit mid-palate before layers of black tea, crushed herbs, hints of mint and sandalwood add complexity. A star and a wine that will drink for 20 or 30 years should you choose.
Matthew Tipping - Private Account Manager
David Berry Green
Luca Roagna has captured the pure essence of one of Barbaresco’s aristocratic vineyards. This is the Musigny of Barbaresco, with the 50-plus year old vines producing a wine with an ethereal cherry and raspberry-infused nose. The wine has a powerful grace to it, with a sense of the sweet red fruit mid-palate before layers of black tea, crushed herbs, hints of mint and sandalwood add complexity. A star and a wine that will drink for 20 or 30 years should you choose.
Matthew Tipping - Private Account Manager
Lis Neris,
Drink now,
A blend of 95 percent Verduzzo and five percent Riesling, the fruit is harvested by hand and the grapes are dried for around four months on mats. Once desiccated, a long, slow fermentation takes place in new 225-litre French oak barrels. The result is a wine that is has just the right sweetness and richness, balanced with a saline minerality and fresh acidity.
Drink 2016-2026.
Drink 2016-2026.
Valgiano, Tuscany,
Ready, but will keep,
From their limestone outcrop overlooking Lucca comes this finely-woven Sangiovese blend. Merlot and Syrah fruit provide immediate drinkability, while the Sangiovese supplies the sophistication. Reflecting the fine sand and limestone soils of this former silk merchant’s estate, the great vintage and the immense care taken to hand make and rear this elegant wine, one is treated to a compact, richly textured and beautifully transparent mouthfeel wine that will delight in its youth but stun with age!
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
Giuseppe Mascarello & Figli,
Ready, but will keep,
Santo Stefano di Perno differs from the other two Baroli in that it’s found in the village of Monforte d’Alba, meaning more iron rich sand, higher up and comprising a larger percentage of old vines. So while Villero can be drunk almost from the off, this wine needs more time. This is reflected in Santo Stefano’s slightly dark hue, a nose of sweet strawberry and hay, the palate compact, measured, at its heart a kernel of sapid, herbal, almost balsamic sweet fruit; the tannins molten but present, underpinning it all. Sunnier than the sapid 2008.
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
Antinori,
Ready, but will keep,
Balsamic notes prevail on the nose of this wine, followed by aromas of ripe fruit and spices. On the palate the first sensations are velvety, with soft tannins and much finesse. The finish and aftertaste are well supported by the mineral notes which give it a lovely length and persistence, while the vineyards are situated on rocky, slightly limestone soil. Benchmark plus Bolgheri!
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
Antinori,
Ready, but will keep,
The 2009 Antinori Solaia is similar to the 2007 in its volume and richness, but it is less extroverted. This is another gorgeous Solaia that will drink well pretty much during its entire life. The warm year yielded a racy Solaia with no hard edges and fabulous overall balance.
Antonio Galloni - Dec-2013
Antonio Galloni - Dec-2013
Il Poggione,
Ready, but will keep,
Il Poggione is a winery steeped in history with its origins dating back to the late 1800s. Owned by Leopoldo and Livia Franceschi , it is situated below the beautiful hilltop town of Sant’Angelo in Colle, a part of the Brunello di Montalcino appellation characterised by a temperate, yet well-ventilated micro-climate. This benefits the grapes by maintaining refreshing acidity levels and extending their ripening time.
Father and son winemaking team Fabrizio and Alessandro Bindocci coax the best from these privileged vineyard sites; they are also proponents of a traditional wine-making style which includes submerging the cap with frequent pump overs (for more colour and tannin extraction), and ageing in large casks (so that wood flavours remain subtle and do not interfere with the natural expression of the Sangiovese and the Sant’Angelo terroir).
In the best vintages the wines demonstrate extraordinary development in bottle. Even better, prices have remained very reasonable, considering the superb quality of the wine. Poggione’s straight Brunello is one of the most fairly-priced, cellar worthy wines of the appellation. This is a benchmark property for fine, traditionally made Brunello capable of ageing superbly.
Chris Pollington- Private Account Manager
Father and son winemaking team Fabrizio and Alessandro Bindocci coax the best from these privileged vineyard sites; they are also proponents of a traditional wine-making style which includes submerging the cap with frequent pump overs (for more colour and tannin extraction), and ageing in large casks (so that wood flavours remain subtle and do not interfere with the natural expression of the Sangiovese and the Sant’Angelo terroir).
In the best vintages the wines demonstrate extraordinary development in bottle. Even better, prices have remained very reasonable, considering the superb quality of the wine. Poggione’s straight Brunello is one of the most fairly-priced, cellar worthy wines of the appellation. This is a benchmark property for fine, traditionally made Brunello capable of ageing superbly.
Chris Pollington- Private Account Manager
Romano Dal Forno,
Ready, but will keep,
I'm not sure how anyone can resist a wine like the 2009 Amarone della Valpolicellla Monte Lodoletta. It would be impossible to exaggerate the enormity of this wine. Romano Dal Forno has his critics, of course: Some people find his wines exaggerated and too big to drink. They have a point, but you cannot doubt the sheer quality of winemaking that goes behind this monumental wine. Dal Forno's Amarone is a message of optimism that speaks to the infinite possibilities that can be achieved with a simple fruit like the grape. The decadent and layered bouquet offers slow pulses of black fruit, tar, teriyaki, mesquite and prune. The wine wraps like a thick blanket over the palate. This beautiful bottle should be aged ten more years.
Monica Larner - eRobertParker.com #216 - Dec 2014
Monica Larner - eRobertParker.com #216 - Dec 2014
Giovanni Rosso, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
An excellent, benchmark Serralunga d’Alba Barolo, traditionally made by one their own, Davide Rosso, who blended the fruit of five vineyards scattered across the commune. It’s a wine that clearly shows the bright, tight cranberry fruit lift, fine lines and understated drive and persistence for which the village is renowned, if more so locally than abroad (yet). Very trim, the nose alive with sunny red fruit and minerally coolness; the palate‘s ethereal, tense, delicate even, with a refreshing, salty lick to balance the open, warm 2009 fruit, along with hints of truffle. Beautifully judged. Drinking 2014 – 2024.
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
E.Pira di Chiara Boschis, Piedmont,
Ready, but will keep,
Chiara’s Cannubi is distinctly bright and pale red in colour, setting it apart from the blueberry purple of Mosconi. The colour is a tenuous link to the great Baroli of Serralunga d’Alba, where sand also plays an important role. The nose too is equally lifted, notably finer than Mosconi, with a pert cherry red kirsch character that elegantly continues on into the strawberry, salato palate in one fluid movement. There’s a freshness that supports the fact that Chiara is one of the first to harvest. Promising. Drinking 2017 – 2027.
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
Cantina Bartolo Mascarello,
Ready, but will keep,
Harvested on 1st October, twelve days earlier than in 2008 (and ten before 2010), Maria Teresa’s 2009 Barolo remains a classic, traditional blend of four vineyards: Barolo’s Rué, San Lorenzo and Cannubi and Rocche di Torriglione from the village of La Morra; whence her family originated. There’s less alcohol than the hot 2007, yet the wine faithfully records the hot summer: beautiful sunny red/pink colour, swimming with intense yet suave, discreet, composed, strawberry spice and sandalwood notes; there’s a typically gorgeous roll of fruit while remaining composed and yet open-hearted. Pure with a definite sweet spot. So fluid, so feminine; alive with delicate acidity. Full of light. Echoes of Graci’s Sicilian Etna Rosso (without the lava)?!
David Berry Green
David Berry Green
Cascina delle Rose,
Ready, but will keep,
Lying a few hundred metres to the west of the Tre Stelle vineyard, Rio Sordo is so different in character. It is more introverted compared to Tre Stelle’s gaity, more compact and shows a darker fruited sensuality along with the structure for extensive ageing. This comes from older vines and richer soils, so it is quite serious and needs time to unfold.
David Berry Green, Italian Fine Wine Buyer
David Berry Green, Italian Fine Wine Buyer