La Palazzetta, Brunello di Montalcino Riserva, Tuscany, Italy 2016

Brunello's Riserva category is sometimes called into question in the region – is it, given the long ageing requirements for ‘ordinary’ Brunello, really needed? Riserva certainly showed its worth in this year's DWWA, where the 'normale' versions mainly hailed from the difficult (though not impossible) 2017 vintage. 2016 was always going to provide wonderful Riserva wines while we wait for their younger siblings, and this darkly translucent example, fragrant with refined red fruits, provides seductive proof. It is settled and softly articulated on the palate, long and quietly pulsing with transmuted red fruits, summer forest warmth and the visceral allure of game, illuminated with the glowing acidity of 2016. The tannins melt away as you hold the wine in your mouth.

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