San Filippo Brunello di Montalcino Le Lucere 2021

“A perfumed and enchanting wine that seduces you with its pure aromas of plums, peaches, cedar, sandalwood and roses. Medium-bodied with ultra-fine tannins that caress your palate and give a long and beautiful finish. Extremely silky and polished. Crunchy. A great wine that's a benchmark for the vintage. One of the best ever. Very drinkable now, but better after 2028. (JS)”

“Packed with ripe black cherry, blackberry and pomegranate flavors, this red adds grace notes of iron, sweet spices and eucalyptus while firming up on the finish. There's plenty of fruit, and the tannins are refined, if assertive on the finish today. Best from 2029 through 2048. 670 cases made, 340 cases imported. (BS)”

“I tried San Filippo's wines blind with a couple dozen other Brunello and the family resemblance was unmistakable – that concentration juxtaposed with freshness, as well as a lively spiciness. This single-vineyard bottling dials all that up a notch with additional intensity and complexity. It leads with mint, crushed allspice, clove, sandalwood and cinnamon. Underneath the dense, youthful, almost candied dark cherry fruit, a juiciness surges. The structure here is also distinct, with tight, crisp tannins holding everything solidly in place. Balsamic green herbs suffuse the finish. Plenty here for ageing. (MM)”

“The San Filippo 2021 Brunello di Montalcino Le Lucére reveals a darker color compared to the Comunali and greater fruit weight, adding depth and texture to the wine. Where the Comunali feels lean on the palate, Le Lucére shows breadth and a more individual character, shaped by its single-vineyard origin with distinctive yellowish sandstone soils. Flavors of wild plum and dark currant segue to light smoke and a flinty mineral note that reinforces the wine's sense of freshness, while the tannins feel somewhat sweet (still very tight at the beginning, but they do soften) in this Brunello. (ML)”

“The 2021 Brunello di Montalcino Le Lucére is vividly fruit-focused. It opens with a blend of crushed black raspberries and blueberries elevated by nuances of pine and rosemary. This wine displays lovely elegance and a velvety feel, with cooling acidity to balance as masses of ripe red berry fruits slowly saturate the palate. Sneaky tannins frame the finish as the 2021 takes a turn toward the serious side, structured and incredibly long. It leaves a bitter dark chocolate resonance and violet inner florals to fade slowly. (EG)”