In Search of Brunello di Montalcino´s Soul - Chapter III

Time to pull the cork out of a bottle from one of the Big boys in Brunello. Poggio Sotto, Soldera, Biondi-Santi, Salvioni - not new names for me, but new flavors. Other than a really young bottle of Biondi-Santi (tasted many years ago and it was hard as nails) I haven´t tasted anything from these producers.

The Consorzio have awarded 4 stars to the 1993 vintage, a bit overrated if one is to believe several wine writers.

1993 Brunello di Montalcino Cerbaiola, Salvioni
What a lovely and complex nose! Right out of the bottle and all night through this is a stunner. Gorgeous aromas of dried cherries, sweet lingonberries, leather, violets and dried flowers flows up from the glass. An ethereal nose. Structure, depth and lightness. I would guess that this is fully mature, but since my experience is what it is in context of Brunello´s, I can only make an educated guess. Just beautiful.
The taste is like drinking velvet, the tannins are beautifully integrated in the sweet fruit and offers support and structure in the background. Lovely notes of sage, rosehips, dried cherries, chocolate biscuits and sun warm tiles. The finish goes on for over a minute. What a wine! Complexity and hedonism in a bottle. The most satisfying wine I have had in a while. More vintages of Salvioni is already on their way...
96p   (tasted 2012/10)

Previous chapters:

Prologue

Chapter I

Chapter II