2015 Ciacci Piccolomini d'Aragona Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Santa Caterina d'Oro

The 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Vigna di Pianrosso Santa Caterina d'Oro is a fine and delicate wine that cleverly delivers the intensity of the vintage but without the heaviness or the ripeness. This wine holds back, just enough, to affirm its poised balance in terms of fruit richness, texture and tannic structure. It shows symmetry throughout. Dark cherry fruit, cassis, plum, lavender and campfire ash set the tone. The mouthfeel is thickly woven and generous, more so than the more linear and focused 2016 Brunello Pianrosso (that I preferred by a tiny margin). This special Riserva represents a 11,000-bottle production.