2001 Cerbaiona Brunello di Montalcino

What a joy it is to taste Molinari's 2001 Brunello di Montalcino. A dark, translucent ruby, it opens with a profound, deeply expressive nose followed by notes of licorice, tar, black cherries and smoke that take on new dimensions of complexity as this great wine sits in the glass. Deceptively medium in body, it shows plenty of vibrant fruit, structure and fine, noble tannins which insure it will still be a magical wine in 15 years and likely beyond. This Brunello has been nothing short of stunning on the two occasions I've tasted it so far and it is undoubtedly one of the vintage's unqualified successes. It is highly recommended. Recent bottles of the 1999 and 1990 have also been immensely enjoyable. Anticipated maturity

Dark red. Knockout nose offers raspberry, strawberry, rose petal, orange peel, graphite, tobacco, minerals, mint and woodsy underbrush. Large-scaled, compellingly sweet and deep but not at all heavy. Concentrated, sappy flavors of wild red fruits are complicated by a whiff of leather and firmed by strong minerality. As huge as this is, it offers great vibrancy and precision, even elegance. In its vertical and horizontal dimensions, this stunning wine is almost too big for the mouth. Finishes with palate-staining persistence and kaleidoscopic flavors of red fruits, minerals and leather. I followed this bottle for 48 hours, and the fruit refused to fade.