Casanova di Neri Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto 2010

100 points Monica Larner (Wine Advocate): “[$440 list] Here is a stunning wine that exudes excellence in primary material and winemaking craft. Man and nature come together with perfect precision and harmony in the 2010 Brunello di Montalcino Cerretalto. The balance is exquisite. Bold cherry and blackberry notes are followed by crushed mineral, licorice, smoke and lightly fragrant cedar. The wine also shows convincing power and volume. It spreads evenly over the palate, and its flavor intensity can be counted over many long minutes. Cerretalto is beautifully concentrated and rich, but it is never too heavy or dense. This is an Italian icon that is still drinking young now, but it has an exciting world of possibility ahead. I think we'd all like to come along for the ride. Drink: 2020-2045. (Mar 2018)”

100 points James Suckling: “This is very tannic and powerful with loads of currants, spices and hints of wood. So much stone and mineral character to this. Violets, too. Full-bodied, tight and structured. Massively dense yet agile and bright. It goes on for minutes. Needs at least three or four years to soften. Try in 2020. (11/9/16)"

99 points Falstaff: "Clear, shining ruby with a fine garnet sheen. A perfect nose - smells of ripe, intense cherries, lots of blackberry. Plenty of rich ripe fruit but does not seem overripe at any moment, whilst in the background tobacco and cardamom add multilayered complexity. The approach again has plenty of ripe, vivid fruit - cherry and blackberry - then unfolds with fine-meshed, grippy tannin. Profound and salty with a very long finish, this wine is difficult not to swallow! (3/18/16)"