2012 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Diecianni
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Tasting notes
This is a special treat, and I'm so grateful to the folks at Le Chiuse for kindly sending this sample for review. Released 10 years after the vintage, the 2012 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Diecianni gives us a concrete opportunity to measure the longevity of bottle-aged Brunello. The bottles are numbered by hand, and I tasted number 343. I was not initially a believer in the long-term merits of the 2012 vintage, but this stunning bottle has changed my mind. Sangiovese can age with grace and care, and that's what this wine teaches us. Aromas of wild berry, dried current, red orange, earth and rusty nail converge with precision. The wine's color is vibrant and bright despite the nearly 10 years of age, and the mouthfeel is light and radiant in intensity. There is a lot of aspiration in this wine, and I think you'll be inspired. Unfortunately, only 2,000 bottles were held back for release.
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Average Score
Walter Speller, jancisrobinson.com
Monica Larner, Wine Advocate
More reviews and scores
Bottle number 691 of 2000. Unfiltered. Lustrous mid ruby. Savoury-sweet, perfumed mineral-charged cherry nose. Ripe, intensely perfumed cherry fruit on the palate that melts into the supple acidity. Lots of concentrated fruit on the finish stitched together by chewy tannins. Quite spectacular. (WS)
The 2012 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Dieci Anni is breathtaking, pulling you close to the glass with a dark, rich display of crushed autumn leaves, dried roses and black cherries. This is texturally stunning as well, velvety yet somehow lifted, offering exotic spices, tart berries, plums and inner florals that seem to cascade across the senses. The palate aches with youthful tension through the long and almost chewy finale, as nuances of licorice and balsam herbs slowly fade. The 2012 leaves a staining of concentration upon the palate. What a gorgeous wine! The Dieci Anni is a late release from the library cellar. Also of note is that production was down by about 30% in 2013.