Casanova di NeriGiovanni Neri Brunello di Montalcino 2020

Since the last acquisition of the house, a modern classic. Smell with hints of black cherry and pink pepper, then laurel and dehydrated thyme nuances. It opens to the juicy and taut palate, highlighting salty-savory tannins and spicy notes. It closes on officinal notes and red fruit.

The 2020 Brunello Di Montalcino Giovanni Neri boasts a darker red/purple hue and is completely different, offering aromas of dark mineral earth, polished leather, sappy herbs, black cherry compote, dark chocolate, and menthol. Fleshy and full, it saturates the palate with lush, ripe tannins and a more pronounced saltiness, giving the wine a mouthwatering feel and a long-lasting finish, with notes of blood orange lasting on the back palate. It deserves time in the cellar before drinking over the coming 20 years.

A solid red with mushroom, bark, blackberry and black-truffle character. Full and layered with open tannins and a long, persistent finish. Creamy and polished. From a single vineyard with vines averaging 50 years old. Best from 2026.

The Casanova di Neri 2020 Brunello di Montalcino Giovanni Neri is a lifted and punchy wine with great vertical delivery of aromas. It ferments with 10% to 15% whole-cluster fruit. Giovanni and Gianlorenzo Neri noticed brown stems and perfumed aromas, and these qualities gave them the inspiration to use the stems. Cherry and red fruit aromas are followed by pepper, wild spice, sweet earth and dusty pencil shaving. There are hints of saddle leather on the one hand and pressed rosemary herb on the other. At the very end, there is a hint of something that tastes like a crunchy breakfast bacon strip. I do love the intensity and the energy of this wine. Only 8,600 bottles were created. Fruit comes from a seven-hectare parcel in the Sesti area (along the dirt road that goes from Castelnuovo dell'Abate to Sant'Angelo in Colle) that was purchased in 2017. The vines were planted in the 1970s. The wine ages in tonneaux for 30 months, and the tannins are beautifully integrated.

The 2020 Brunello di Montalcino Giovanni Neri pulls the taster down to earth as whiffs of sous-bois, ashen stones and animal musk dissipate to reveal layers of dried black cherry, lavender and rubbed sage. It's silken in feel, with hints of polished ripe red and blue fruit. A liquid floral concentration adds youthful tension. Structured, long and quite potent, it has sweet and round tannins that taper off with citrus-infused black currant and exotic spice aromas. The Giovanni Neri hails from nearly 50-year-old vines near Castelnuovo dell'Abate. It's a showstopper.
- By Eric Guido on November 2023