Biondi Santi Biondi-Santi Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 2016 750ml

Wow, here is a vintage I’ve been anxiously waiting to try. The 2016 growing season was one of the best in recent memory in Montalcino, and if we look back in time, this vintage marks the year Biondi-Santi was sold to a French group. The prestigious 2016 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva proves a mighty collector’s bottle that will undoubtedly gain in complexity and depth with careful bottle age. The wine offers wild nuances of forest berry and tart cherry, and there are herbal side notes as well as floral tones of dried violet and lilac. The tannins are soft, powdery and feel like they melt away on the palate.

Aromas of strawberries, flowers, fresh mushroom, forest flower, sandalwood, and hints of balsamic. Full-bodied and tight on the finish. This is a linear and fine-tannined red. Available in March 2023. Needs another five years or so to show its full potential. New classic. Better after 2026. (James Suckling)

The 2016 Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva is layered and unfolds in the glass with incense, baking spice, ripe red cherry, and cedar. It has more concentration and length through the mid-palate and offers an impeccable balance of structure, ripeness, and tension. It is expressive on the nose, but it is even more impactful at this stage with its intensity through the palate, with nearly electric energy of wild raspberry, rose petal, tea leaf, and orange zest. Allow for cellaring another 3–4 years. Drink 2026–2046. (Audrey Frick)

A harmonious, balanced red, this sets the stage perfectly for the cherry, strawberry, floral, iron and tobacco flavors. Fresh and detailed, with a linear profile and refined structure driving the seemingly endless finish. Superb. Best from 2026 through 2050.

This features a well of blackberry and black cherry flavors, along with iron, licorice and fresh herb aromas and flavors. The dense tannins are easily matched by the concentrated flavors, and this shows fine potential, despite the compact finish now. Best from 2025 through 2045. 550 cases imported. (Bruce Sanderson)