2004 - Brunello di Montalcino Vigna Paganelli Riserva, Il Poggione

The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Vigna Paganelli is coy with a dark, dusty bouquet that emerges over time, mixing cedar shavings, licorice, balsamic spice, rum-soaked cherries and clove. It displays fantastic balance, with a silken feel, pretty inner sweetness and a cascade of ripe, citrus-laced red berry fruits. Fine-grained tannins amass as this impossibly youthful specimen finishes with structural heft and tension, leaving behind a tart cranberry concentration and an air of autumnal spice. The 2004 Riserva remains primary after twenty years. This might be immortal.