Valdicava, Brunello di Montalcino, Riserva Madonna Piano

Beautiful brunello

2016 vintage

This 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva still surprises with a good dose of fruit on the nose — much more than you’d expect at this age. On the palate it’s wonderfully relaxed and harmonious, gliding along with real ease. But then the finish comes a bit too quickly; it just doesn’t stretch out the way you hope a Riserva would, which leaves a slightly disappointing final impression. Still, a charming wine with plenty to enjoy along the way.

2004 vintage

Brunello Wine Dinner - November 16, 2025 Hosted a Brunello dinner with fellow wine collectors, paired Wagyu steak, Tuscan white beans, sautéed spinach with lemon, roasted carrots/red onions/fennel. Served the wines in this order: 1. 2006 Siro Pacenti 2. Paired the 2006 Casanova di Neri Tenuta Nuova & the 2006 Cerretalto 3. Paired the 2004 & 2007 Valdicava Riservas 4. 2006 Cerbaiona 2004 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Riserva 97 points. Opened & decanted 2 hours before service. Lots of finesse …

2004 vintage

Double decanted at 3pm and taken to Basilco restaurant in Millburn NJ. I gather more recent vintages have been aged in large Slavonian casks, but this tasted more oak-influenced than that would suggest. Very rich and ripe, so many might rate this even higher than I. Red and black fruited with good acidity and some secondary notes of smoky earth, dark florals and spice. Fairly long finish and nice depth. Nowhere near fully mature.

2004 vintage

Motherwolf - from my friend’s cellar, decanted an hour prior to dinner and we started drinking it at least another hour into service. That turned out to be a perfect decant. Huge wine with dark fruit and blackberry and black current liqueur. This wine reminds me that great Brunello is hard to beat and Valdicava comes through once again pairing with Tuscan ribeye.

2004 vintage

Deep and gentle

2004 vintage

Wine dinner - RJ's in town (The Capital Grille at Tysons corner, VA) : Expressive nose displaying ripe, slightly dried black fruit,b lack cherry, blackberry liqueur, licorice, strong tobacco, beef blood, tapenade, ash, and crushed rocks. Excellent concentration, with generous black fruit, rich yet silky, bright acidity, strong mineral, showing firm slightly dry tannins and a long ripe black fruit driven finish with a lingering ash note. A structured wine with a strong tannic presence.

2004 vintage

what toothless... said a bit tight on P/P where you notice the oak day two: great with sour cherry, rhubarb, complex notes...really nice nothing like the young international style from the past, has aged in a way that i prefer

2004 vintage

SuperSangiovese (Fiore's house) : This had to be one of the top wines of the tasting, instead it was sadly corked. On it's place we had a Caparzo 1997

1999 vintage

Decanted for 2 hours. Medium tawny color. Nose of Dried raisin and fig, floral expressions, and earthy undertones. Medium- body, smooth, well integrated medium+ tannins, medium+ acidity. Overall a subtle, complex wine. It developed nicely in the glasss, made you pause and think. Enjoyable, but this isn't a crowd pleaser, so save it for those who enjoy subtle, aged wine.

2004 vintage

Drank from double magnum. Good color. Palate had dark berry flavors with an interesting note of pine or eucalyptus. I suspect the wine has begun to fade a bit, but still drinking well. Nose got a little pruny after a couple of hours, but I didn’t get any of that on the palate.

2004 vintage

Very good, but this bottle (from a recently acquired lot) lacked some of the energy and complexity of prior bottles. It might be an indication that this is on a downward trajectory, but more likely this is just bottle variation.

2004 vintage

Consistent with earlier notes. Decanted for almost 60 minutes, then poured back in bottle to bring to restaurant. It was open and smooth but may have lost a bit of energy and suffered a bit from excessive decanting or the travel.

2004 vintage

Still needs a good decant and with many years of life ahead of it.

2004 vintage

St. Regis Toronto.

2004 vintage

Had at an informal tasting. No time for notes, but really lovely.

2004 vintage

Brilliant cloudy orange-ruby. Sandalwood, cinnamon, and red berries on the nose. Resplendant with spices, hints of orange peel, tons of red berries, and the aforementioned sandalwood. Delicious.

2004 vintage

This is the first bottle of this vintage that I’ve opened, and I felt it was time to give one a shot. Not surprisingly, still fairly tight. Decanted in the glass where it opened up further. Aromatics were somewhat muted, cherry clearly there, but no florals. Tannins were sharp, evidencing this still has a lot of room to run.

2016 vintage

Expressive nose with dark red berries, tomato leafs, leafy, and also some notes oxidation and torrefaction. On the palate heady and ripe, layered iwth herbs, dark and dried fruits, Quite modern in its style.

1999 vintage

From Magnum. Tasted blind, briefly decanted. Aging notes of wet earth, herbal notes of black tea, liquorish and oak notes. Broad and dense palate with sandy but fine tannin providing for a soft texture – even though still somewhat mouth-coating. The palate also showed more clearly the tertiary profile. Fresh acidity, good balance and length. This is a surprisingly muscular and dense Brunello, almost more akin to a Super-Tuscan. That said, after the reveal, additional aeration in the glass did …

1999 vintage

Consistent with prior notes. This is in a great place and seems like it will be for quite some time. 90 minute splash decant.

2004 vintage

Stunning!

2004 vintage

I re-stocked, and am so glad I did. Will be drinking these as long as I can until my various 2010 Brunellos start to come around. See prior notes

2004 vintage

Took a couple of hours to open up. Great funk, tobacco, wet, moss, juicy cherry. Smell really opened up a few hours in. Super long finish with great nose. Super Duper polished you would know it when you drank it.

2004 vintage

This was drunk with friends tonight at a restaurant. This wine is very varietal with a big body. It's in its drinking window at 20 years of age. It's rich and silky with fine tannins.

2004 vintage

Funky. Not well stored / mishandled?bought from benchmark unfo

2004 vintage

Porzana (Porzana, Mpls) : Vary dark red color. PNP, drank a glass plus over an hour plus. This blew me away tonight. The nose was stunning; intense and explosive aromatics, high toned and off the hook, cassis, balasamic strawberries, menthol, scorched erth, mint, English saddle leather, graphite. The palate is equally impressive with an amazing penetration, layered and so bright; cassis, strawberry, viscous, dried herbs abd garrigue, a mix of red and black fruits, graphite, full bodied and a velveteen …

2004 vintage

5 hour slow ox. Pretty good but a massive drop off from the blockbuster I tasted 2 years ago. Not sure if somehow it’s shut down now but didn’t have much expression on the nose. Overall, just decent when I expected so much more. Unfortunately last of my 4 bottles.

2004 vintage

Nice Brunello, now on its peak, smooth Italian bordeaux ike, lightly powerful, lovely.

2004 vintage

Very closed, not giving much at all

2016 vintage

Herbs, cab-like smoke, bordeau-like; brown sauce; softer on the palate, long-chain tannins, very nice indeed. Tuscan blind Dirty Dozen at La Paella. ranked: 5th out of 10 wines

2004 vintage

This '16 'Madonna del Piano' from Valdicava was simply exceptional. Yes, this wine is still quite young but this bottle was properly aerated ahead of time. This was one of the bottles we got to enjoy with Pierfillipo during our sit-down interview with him. Tasting notes of truffle, dusty black cherry, wet soil, and beautiful floral notes of Rose & some sweet pepper. Structurally, you can tell how powerful this wine is but the finish was absolutely humming. This is …

2016 vintage

Blackberry, black currant, leather, chocolate; powerful but elegant, showing age and some loss of fruit, but still alluring, enjoyable, and very good

1999 vintage

The 2016 Valdicava Madonna del Piano is a real showstopper — graceful, expressive, and absolutely captivating from start to finish. It opens with perfumed floral aromas of violets and rose petals, leading into a core of fresh black cherry and raspberry, all wrapped in a veil of bergamot, sage, and earthy licorice. There’s a touch of sweet spice that adds warmth without overwhelming the wine’s bright, focused energy. On the palate, it’s fresh and vibrant, with a round mouthfeel, medium+ …

2016 vintage

Acquired new for then retail price of $150 and stored in cellar thereafter. Decanted for 3 hours. Bellissimo. Simply stunning wine from beginning to end.

1999 vintage

Definitely not past it's prime but I dont think it has more than a few more years in it.

1999 vintage

Delicious but fading fast. Drink now!

1999 vintage

Not a style I generally prefer, but this was good. Bit pungent nose and surprisingly less settled than expected for a 1999 vintage, but fruit was ripe and rich.

1999 vintage

A bit tired with a waning mid palate...Still has lots of tannins and pull but its just Earthy at best. DRINK

1999 vintage

Decanted 2 hours. Good, with a long finish, but disappointing vs. expectations and not anywhere close to fantastic. Similar overall profile as the last bottle of this we had 10 years ago = subdued fruit and a bit tannic.

1999 vintage

Perde aged Brunello

1999 vintage

Surprisingly tannic bottle after 2 hour decant

1999 vintage

Nearly perfect and still will last. Supple and powerful Sangiovese with a strong currant nose and deep long finish. Decanted for 90 min and could have used a little more time. Has at least 3-8 years of solid life left.

1999 vintage

Misc Tasting - Terkel Style (Birkerød) : Very rustic wine, packed with barnyard/stable aromas and lots of fruit. The acidity is very extreme but overall it is very enjoyable and a pleasure to taste.

1999 vintage

Was ready to smack this down...massive fail on that point, as this was great. Certainly the yang to the Poggio di Sotto yin - much darker and more ripe dark fruit profile, but it still felt it had great character. Also a grilled meaty feeling to it. Superb length. 96 pts and the greatest surprise of the trip. Just read Ken V. recent note and I didn't get the intrusive tannic feeling in this bottle.

1999 vintage

Drinking really well after being double decanted and aerated for 90 minutes in a decanter. Powerful, dense and delicious. This is almost at its apex and for one of o=us was the wine of the flight. everyone else went for the 01

1999 vintage

WCC Pre-2000 Brunello di Montalcino and Chianti (Fort Orange Club, Albany, NY) : Interesting. Good length. Surprisingly rough tannins. I don't see that this has the fruit for these tannins.

1999 vintage

Dinner in a contemporay European restaurant in a private club. Served with roasted Bresse Pigeon in a garden of baby vegetables, very nice garnish indeed. I bought 6 Magnums of this a few years back. This is the last bottle drunk. Opened and breathed in bottle (however a glass was poured out first to increase the breathing surface area), for around 30 minutes before poured straight to glass. Served before the 02 Mouline and Turque. Fantastic colour of clear red/purple/black …

1999 vintage

Still young. Excellent concentration. Smooth, Gorgeous wine.

1999 vintage

Decanted for an hour and could have used more time but is an excellent, full flavored Brunello with depth and a decent finish but still young. Drink 97s first

1999 vintage

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Valdicava, Brunello di Montalcino, Riserva Madonna Piano

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