The 2012 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Poggio al Vento is a monumental wine from this storied appellation in southern Tuscany. From a warm vintage, this is a deeply textured, rich and succulent rendition of Sangiovese. You taste the exuberant flavors of sun-drenched fruit. However, you also taste some evolution (remember, we are talking about a wine released seven years after the harvest) with tarry notes of toasted spice, licorice and Spanish cedar. This wine ages in large oak casks (of various sizes) for four years followed by an additional two years in bottle. We can look forward to more bottle evolution as the wine moves forward in time. Some 20,000 bottles were made.

Monica Larner - Wine Advocate (95)