Almost ten years in bottle and this is coming together better than before. Enough Grenache to keep it medium than heavy, enough morvedre to provide tannins and enough Syrah for spice. Alcohol has melded and tannins and acidity play their part. I like southern Rhone, oak in control, lovely earthiness and spice. — 3 years ago
Concentrated and powerful. Also a very clean, fruity (ripe fruits of the forest) and classy wine. Underbrush. All kinds of herbs (like laurel and thyme). Went well with confit de canard, Belgian fries and lentils with fennel, and after that it stood its ground pretty solid. Great with food. Compelling food for thought when drunk on it’s own. — 3 years ago
2016 vintage. Last tasted 7.7.21. Dark cherry, ground black pepper and spicy oak nose. Medium body with enough plushness for those looking for a palate pillow and enough acidity/tannins for those looking to retain red street cred. Plummy finish. Maan…this is getting mo better. Need to pick up another 3-6 bottles and bury them. The nice price. — 4 years ago
Dujac fans know how great their ‘06’s are, Jeremy Seysses’ first vintage in full control. Aux Combottes, surrounded by Grand Cru’s on all four sides, is terrific in 2006, now fully open and giving wafting an unmistakable Dujac perfume with elegant spice laced red berry fruit, cocoa and Gevrey earth. It’s liquid velvet on the palate, notably impressive for the vintage, with superb balance of fruit character, minerality and fine grained tannic structure. Terrific showing! — 5 months ago
Delicious and juicy. Had with the cauliflower soup but would stand up to way more — 3 years ago
2005 vintage. Almost tastes like it could have been released last week. Super youthful with dark berry and plum blasts. Decent structure but not oppressive. Catching this one just below the top of the bell curve. Hopefully, you’ve got more than one bottle kicking around on a piece of ground in your hometown. Other-worldly now but methinx it’s about to get even better. Last tasted in mid-June and same score but this bottle was slightly better. Seek this out-now. — 4 years ago
From psychic wines for first night of Hanukkah. Dark fruit and baking spice. — 4 years ago
Holy moly ravioli — 2 years ago
Tonight, we’re sipping a delicious Poggio Antico Brunello di Montalcino DOCG (2012).
The vineyards of Poggio Antico are situated on some of Montalcino’s highest hills (>1,500 ft elevation), overlooking the beautiful, sun-soaked landscape of Tuscany.
In a warm climate, high altitude sites like this benefit from a comparatively lower air temperature, greater diurnal range (warm days, cool nights), and enhanced solar intensity, particularly when vines are planted on hillsides, angled towards the sun.
These conditions (among others) are important for quality winemaking, for example, the intense sunshine promotes grape ripening (sugar accumulation; development of flavors, tannins, color), while the cooling influences help retain acidity and more delicate aromas in the grapes; they also enable a longer ripening period overall, setting the stage for a well-balanced, concentrated wine.
It was interesting to learn that Poggio Antico vinifies and matures its Sangiovese according to detailed soil units, leveraging what it calls a “geological symphony,” as a significant part of the terroir expression. It later blends (or “harmonizes”) these units with the aim of creating balance and complexity.
As a Brunello di Montalcino DOCG, this wine must be 100% Sangiovese and could not be released from Poggio for at least 5 years from the harvest, during which time it aged for at least 2 years in oak. Poggio exceeded these legal minimums by aging this wine for 4 years, including 3 years in traditional Slavonian oak barrels and one year in bottle.
We paired this wine with a homemade Bolognese. The spices of the sauce lent symmetry to the spice (nutmeg, clove) notes in the wine, which didn’t compete, but, rather, complemented each other. Also, the fat in the ground sirloin (along with the salty parmesan and decade+ of maturing) helped smooth the high tannins of the Sangiovese, enhancing our palates’ experience of other delicious dimensions.
It was molto bene! Cheers! — 3 years ago




Dana Fritz
Jammy & concentrated. Good bulk find — 2 months ago