8 Vintages of Biondi Santi Riserva 1975-2015: Great opportunity to learn about Biondi Santi and taste 8 Riserva vintages with technical director Frederico Radi. I see why people are intrigued by these wines: they are all about finesse and freshness, with high quality tannins (which still require long ageing to fully melt) and a high and but high quality acidity. Puristic but austere. I don‘t think the balance and the complexity are up there with the best fines wines. And I don’t find enough (or much) hedonistic charm in these wines (there is not enough fruit, especially considering that you should to age these wines 30, 40, 50 years). Don‘t get me wrong, these are good wines just not on the level one would expect given the reputation (or market prices).
TN: Slightly old nose with a bit of dried fruit, tobacco, herbs. On the palate this shows a nice freshness and vivacity, a nice creaminess, finally melted tannins (only wine in the series), Fine red berries, minerality, earthy notes, herbs, nice sweetness. But it shows not the most desirable mix of fresh fruit, mineralit/earthy notes and teritary notes, the best mature wines have. It seems that once the tannins finally melt, not enough fruit is still around. Medium+ length and a good balance. 92 pts
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Tasted at the Matter of Taste Zurich Biondi Santi Masterclass (8 of the 41 Riservas ever made). Below-medium intensity, some light red berry fruit still left, but otherwise rusty and iron-like. Also raisiny notes, tobacco, leather, smoke and earth. A deeply aged palate with a bit of texture left, but thinning out leaving a bit too much acidity. To my surprise the finish leaves you with drying, even rough tannin.
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4 pairs of top notch wines; 9/26/2021-9/27/2021 (Tøyen, Oslo): Double decanted just before dinner. Nose: Bright, lovely freshness, cherries, a slight hint of something in the realm of nail polish or something chemical (but strangely only in a positive way..) Palate: Lovely freshness from the mellowed acidity. This is the reason one should cellar Sangiovese, just perfect balance between mellowed tannins, acidity and a bright, but diffuse fruit profile. Someone around the table picked up chanterelle (which we also had during dinner), and I totally agreed. I have a feeling this could live forever, but either way, perfectly in harmony today.
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Dark garnet color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of anise, black berries and sandalwood. Flavors of black berries, boysenberry and tart cherry. Tangy to tart acidity, medium tannin, full bodied. Drink now.
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Madison Offline 2015; 8/27/2015-8/29/2015: Remarkably youthful in the glass, deep cherry color. A bit shy on the nose, but showing mineral, mint and smoky notes. This becomes completely captivating on the palate, perfectly balanced, velvety mouthfeel, very persistent red berries through a long finish. Fine structure, an excellent wine for great food. 12.5% abv
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Throwndown in Madtown; 8/27/2015-8/29/2015 (Madison, WI): Nice nose of earth, sour cherry, tobacco, and leather. On the palate, classic Brunello profile of tobacco, sour cherry, earth, and spice. Long finish with a bit of grip. This can acutally go for quite a while longer.
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In a vertical tasting with 1971, 1970 and 1969. The '75 was the standout for me. Beautiful balance, lovely fruit and great acidity. The colour was deep red in colour. Lots of savoury notes on the nose and palate. Plenty of secondary and tertiary flavours. Should last for a long time still.
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A Saturday Night in KW (Dave's House): (ex-Chateau 750ml bottle). This pours very dark and opaque considering the age with some light red and bricking toward the rim. When we popped the cork the nose blew us away. Stunning and 95+ points no doubt. By the time we poured out our glasses an hour later the nose almost closed in on itself a tad still showing very pretty notes of tar, tomato, exotic spice, roasted meats, anise, licorice, brown sugar, saline and pickle juice. Palate still feels tight and very structured with abundant tannin and quite a bit of finishing acid. This really stands apart from other brunellos in style and aging curve. Huge amount of acid on the finish, providing great food friendliness and freshness. Showing really classic in the Bionti-Santi house style. Of course one wonders how this was handled upon late-release at the cellars. Was it topped off with something younger? Seems like it....
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Saturday Night in KW (Dave's House): Poured a small pour to low shoulder, slow oxygenation for 3 hours, followed 6 hours in the glass thereafter. Garnet in the glass, with a mild brick. Beyond the first pour to test the wine, the nose was rather reticent, but with some some coaxing, offered up scents of black cherry, leather, spice, cedar, iron, dried herbs, earth, tea leaves, tar, brown sugar, florals and a touch of balsamic glaze. On the palate, still showing immense structure, with medium plus acidity and a relative wall of tannin. The finish is moderate, clipped slightly by the tannin, with lingering tastes of sour cherry, earth, iron, herbs and black tea. As this sat in the glass, air did it no favours. By the time I consumed the remainder, it was turning a touch raisined and more dominant tea notes were coming to the forefront. Overall, quite a perplexing wine. While excellent, it fell short of expectations and showed very young. If this were not an ex-chateau bottle, I would have been questioning its authenticity. Still seems to be holding something back, so if I had one, I would give it at another 5-8 years in the cellar and hope for the best.
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1975 Biondi Santi Riserva Dinner (Dave's House, Kitchener, ON): Very pretty nose right out of the bottle...cherry liquor, earth, moss, cedar, spice, leather, red flowers and ash. The palate shows cured meat, blood, sour cherry, earth moss and spice. There is certainly ample acidity....perhaps a touch too much for my liking as it is somewhat distracting for me. The finish is long, layered and complex. Very pretty wine...but a notch below what I was expecting if I am honest.
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Dark nose with aged fruit, meat, perfume, herbs, tobacco, baking spice, liquorice, coffee, cola and a touch of glue. Medium bodied, velvety and very much alive on the palate with fig to stone fruits, minty breeze, damp leaves, leather and coffee. Long. Huge personality. Fine stuff.
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just terrific!! smells like a walk in a wet forest in late summer. all in balance; great dark red color. Great finesse. bayleaf, licorice, berries, cherries and very nice acidity. Fresh porcini, dark forest fruits, some stewed fruit, man there a lot going on here!!
The wine still has some potential, although I doubt if it will really improve, but the backbone is completely intact.
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Purchased from a large supermarket chain parting out its vintage wine, missed marked and paid $25. Wine was decanted for 2 hours although Ferruccio Biondi-Santi claims it should breath for 24. Light in color, slight brown tinge around rim, big nose, leather, currants, earth, smoke. Palate was deep, rich, expanding, centering on a perfect balance of fruit, tannins, acid bringing a well rounded finsh and an experience worth to seek out if you can find a bottle.
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4/3/2022 - Cailles wrote: 92 Points
8 Vintages of Biondi Santi Riserva 1975-2015: Great opportunity to learn about Biondi Santi and taste 8 Riserva vintages with technical director Frederico Radi. I see why people are intrigued by these wines: they are all about finesse and freshness, with high quality tannins (which still require long ageing to fully melt) and a high and but high quality acidity. Puristic but austere. I don‘t think the balance and the complexity are up there with the best fines wines. And I don’t find enough (or much) hedonistic charm in these wines (there is not enough fruit, especially considering that you should to age these wines 30, 40, 50 years). Don‘t get me wrong, these are good wines just not on the level one would expect given the reputation (or market prices).
TN: Slightly old nose with a bit of dried fruit, tobacco, herbs. On the palate this shows a nice freshness and vivacity, a nice creaminess, finally melted tannins (only wine in the series), Fine red berries, minerality, earthy notes, herbs, nice sweetness. But it shows not the most desirable mix of fresh fruit, mineralit/earthy notes and teritary notes, the best mature wines have. It seems that once the tannins finally melt, not enough fruit is still around. Medium+ length and a good balance. 92 pts
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4/2/2022 - sirpat00 wrote: 89 Points
Tasted at the Matter of Taste Zurich Biondi Santi Masterclass (8 of the 41 Riservas ever made). Below-medium intensity, some light red berry fruit still left, but otherwise rusty and iron-like. Also raisiny notes, tobacco, leather, smoke and earth. A deeply aged palate with a bit of texture left, but thinning out leaving a bit too much acidity. To my surprise the finish leaves you with drying, even rough tannin.
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9/26/2021 - Hugo Hilde Likes this wine: 95 Points
4 pairs of top notch wines; 9/26/2021-9/27/2021 (Tøyen, Oslo): Double decanted just before dinner.
Nose: Bright, lovely freshness, cherries, a slight hint of something in the realm of nail polish or something chemical (but strangely only in a positive way..)
Palate: Lovely freshness from the mellowed acidity. This is the reason one should cellar Sangiovese, just perfect balance between mellowed tannins, acidity and a bright, but diffuse fruit profile. Someone around the table picked up chanterelle (which we also had during dinner), and I totally agreed. I have a feeling this could live forever, but either way, perfectly in harmony today.
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9/18/2015 - wineismylife wrote: 94 Points
WIML94
Tasted non blind.
Dark garnet color in the glass, clear looking throughout. Nose of anise, black berries and sandalwood. Flavors of black berries, boysenberry and tart cherry. Tangy to tart acidity, medium tannin, full bodied. Drink now.
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8/29/2015 - petitblanc wrote: 94 Points
Madison Offline 2015; 8/27/2015-8/29/2015: Remarkably youthful in the glass, deep cherry color. A bit shy on the nose, but showing mineral, mint and smoky notes. This becomes completely captivating on the palate, perfectly balanced, velvety mouthfeel, very persistent red berries through a long finish. Fine structure, an excellent wine for great food. 12.5% abv
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8/29/2015 - GalvezGuy Likes this wine: 94 Points
Throwndown in Madtown; 8/27/2015-8/29/2015 (Madison, WI): Nice nose of earth, sour cherry, tobacco, and leather. On the palate, classic Brunello profile of tobacco, sour cherry, earth, and spice. Long finish with a bit of grip. This can acutally go for quite a while longer.
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2/12/2015 - PC73 wrote: 95 Points
In a vertical tasting with 1971, 1970 and 1969. The '75 was the standout for me. Beautiful balance, lovely fruit and great acidity. The colour was deep red in colour. Lots of savoury notes on the nose and palate. Plenty of secondary and tertiary flavours. Should last for a long time still.
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4/12/2014 - Wine Canuck wrote: 94 Points
A Saturday Night in KW (Dave's House): (ex-Chateau 750ml bottle). This pours very dark and opaque considering the age with some light red and bricking toward the rim. When we popped the cork the nose blew us away. Stunning and 95+ points no doubt. By the time we poured out our glasses an hour later the nose almost closed in on itself a tad still showing very pretty notes of tar, tomato, exotic spice, roasted meats, anise, licorice, brown sugar, saline and pickle juice. Palate still feels tight and very structured with abundant tannin and quite a bit of finishing acid. This really stands apart from other brunellos in style and aging curve. Huge amount of acid on the finish, providing great food friendliness and freshness. Showing really classic in the Bionti-Santi house style. Of course one wonders how this was handled upon late-release at the cellars. Was it topped off with something younger? Seems like it....
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4/12/2014 - alittle wrote: 94 Points
Saturday Night in KW (Dave's House): Poured a small pour to low shoulder, slow oxygenation for 3 hours, followed 6 hours in the glass thereafter. Garnet in the glass, with a mild brick. Beyond the first pour to test the wine, the nose was rather reticent, but with some some coaxing, offered up scents of black cherry, leather, spice, cedar, iron, dried herbs, earth, tea leaves, tar, brown sugar, florals and a touch of balsamic glaze. On the palate, still showing immense structure, with medium plus acidity and a relative wall of tannin. The finish is moderate, clipped slightly by the tannin, with lingering tastes of sour cherry, earth, iron, herbs and black tea. As this sat in the glass, air did it no favours. By the time I consumed the remainder, it was turning a touch raisined and more dominant tea notes were coming to the forefront. Overall, quite a perplexing wine. While excellent, it fell short of expectations and showed very young. If this were not an ex-chateau bottle, I would have been questioning its authenticity. Still seems to be holding something back, so if I had one, I would give it at another 5-8 years in the cellar and hope for the best.
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4/12/2014 - Dave Canada wrote: 93 Points
1975 Biondi Santi Riserva Dinner (Dave's House, Kitchener, ON): Very pretty nose right out of the bottle...cherry liquor, earth, moss, cedar, spice, leather, red flowers and ash. The palate shows cured meat, blood, sour cherry, earth moss and spice. There is certainly ample acidity....perhaps a touch too much for my liking as it is somewhat distracting for me.
The finish is long, layered and complex. Very pretty wine...but a notch below what I was expecting if I am honest.
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11/30/2013 - Hotspur21 Likes this wine: 92 Points
Wonderful nose, a bit more rustic. Lots of red fruit and great sweetness.
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3/15/2013 - LWI wrote: 95 Points
Tuscany Tasting: Dark colored; Deep fruit, complex nose; good length, some sweetness and spice, dark cherry fruit, structured.
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10/9/2012 - Lype Likes this wine: 93 Points
Light and silky, refined aromas, still fruit, good balance, aftertaste is nice but not that strong.
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9/10/2012 - avp wrote:
Dark nose with aged fruit, meat, perfume, herbs, tobacco, baking spice, liquorice, coffee, cola and a touch of glue.
Medium bodied, velvety and very much alive on the palate with fig to stone fruits, minty breeze, damp leaves, leather and coffee. Long.
Huge personality. Fine stuff.
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8/26/2010 - stiang wrote: 96 Points
MAGISK!
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12/9/2006 - Scheper wrote: 96 Points
just terrific!!
smells like a walk in a wet forest in late summer.
all in balance; great dark red color. Great finesse. bayleaf, licorice, berries, cherries and very nice acidity.
Fresh porcini, dark forest fruits, some stewed fruit, man there a lot going on here!!
The wine still has some potential, although I doubt if it will really improve, but the backbone is completely intact.
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6/1/1997 - jeanclaude wrote: 94 Points
Purchased from a large supermarket chain parting out its vintage wine, missed marked and paid $25. Wine was decanted for 2 hours although Ferruccio Biondi-Santi claims it should breath for 24. Light in color, slight brown tinge around rim, big nose, leather, currants, earth, smoke. Palate was deep, rich, expanding, centering on a perfect balance of fruit, tannins, acid bringing a well rounded finsh and an experience worth to seek out if you can find a bottle.
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