Il Poggione is a Brunello superstar and a vintage like this reveals every reason why that affirmation is true. From the second the 2012 Brunello di Montalcino pours into the glass, you know you are in for something special. The wine is darkly saturated and rich in appearance. Absent are those slightly amber or browning hues you often get with Sangiovese in a hot vintage. Nor does the wine show flat or tired characteristics. Instead, the quality of fruit is vibrant and rich. This is a healthy, generous and exuberant Brunello with dark density and succulent fruit flavors that are followed by integrated spice and tobacco. The balance is impressive and one thing you get here is fresh acidity. This is not to be underestimated, because the acidity quota in the 2012 vintage across the appellation is not as high or evident as usual. This is one of the year's best Brunellos.

Drinking Window: 2017 - 2030

Reviewer Name: Monica Larner

Review Date: 1st March 2017

Walnuts and cedar with plums and hints of milk chocolate. Always subtle. Medium body, a solid core of fruit and medium-chewy tannins. Center palate of cherry fruit. Give it a year or two to soften.

Good full red. Medicinal red cherry, raspberry, sweet spices and mint on the fresh, precise nose. Bright and sweet, with a penetrating, austere quality to its flavors of red fruits, minerals and medicinal herbs. Harmonious acidity nicely frames the pure, long, youthfully tight finish. Lovely young Brunello that will repay cellaring.

Shades of leather, spice, tea and iron surround the strawberry and cherry notes in this sleek, energetic red. Firm and tense, with a solid band of tannins lending grip to the finish.

Sant'Angelo in Colle. Dark garnet. Intriguing mix of fresh veg and compost on the nose, plus a bit of charred meat. Round on the palate – already very suave, and very Brunello. Confident expression of the vintage’s combination of ripeness and freshness.