2015 Castello Banfi Brunello di Montalcino Poggio Alle Mura Riserva

Only produced in exceptional vintages, the 2015 Poggio alle Mura Riserva was aged for 30 months in 30% in large French oak casks and 70% in French oak barriques. Expressive aromatics of black cherry cola, balsamic, and sweet tobacco are followed by a generous mid-palate of sun ripened cherry and baked earth, with silky tannins and warming baking spice on the finish. There is serious structure here that is offset by the sunniness of the fruit, making it somewhat approachable in the near future. Cellaring for a couple years should be rewarded over the following 15 years.

The 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Poggio alle Mura sneaks up to full-bodied intensity, but slowly at first. I tasted this wine twice over a 12-hour period, and it took time to open. Dried cassis and berry fruit tones are followed by tar, licorice and rosemary essence. Give it time and this Riserva is an open and accessible expression that underlines intensity, depth and the broad shoulders expected of a Riserva. The fruit is darker and the oak is more prominent, so is the general extraction and richness. This wine draws its fruit from a vineyard with in-house select clones planted in 1982. With 20,000 bottles made, we won't see this wine until April 2021.

The 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Poggio alle Mura Riserva boasts a rich and deeply alluring bouquet, mixing crushed black cherries, plum and confectioners’ spice, along with lifting notes of cedar and mint. It’s soft in texture, supported by zesty acids with tart red berry fruits and wild herbs tones, yet linear in style and a bit one-dimensional. This drops off rather quickly, leaving a subtle coating of fine tannin along with hints of strawberry rosy florals.