Brunello di Montalcino, Giodo 2016

Seamless is a great way to describe this red wine with intense aromas of plums, cherries, walnut and sandalwood. Some lightly toasted oak, roses and lavender as well. Really aromatic. The palate is full and extremely polished with super fine tannins that go on for minutes and spread across your palate. A great wine, following the perfect, 100-point 2015. Better to start drinking this after 2023.

Upon meeting Carlo Ferrini for the first time some 15 years ago, I remember vividly when he described himself as a Sangiovesista, or an adherent of the school of Sangiovese. Many years later, and perhaps to cement that self-appointed moniker, the wine consultant has now settled in Montalcino, or the ultimate holy ground to Sangiovese. Ferrini has embarked on his Giodo estate (with beautiful vineyards and a newly inaugurated winery built precisely according to his technical specifications and wishes), creating his own temple to the mighty Tuscan grape. As a consultant, Ferrini has endured many stylistic transformations over the years, but the personality embraced in his 2016 Brunello di Montalcino celebrates varietal purity, balance and elegance, and I write those words free of hyperbole. Delicate forest berry fruits open to spice, forest floor and balsam herb. The wine presents a pretty wave of freshness, followed by firm tannins and enough fruity texture to smooth over the palate. This is a career-defining wine for this proud Sangiovesista. Production is 10,000 bottles. 2024-2045