Wine Advisor
Valdicava, Madonna del Piano Brunello di Montalcino Riserva DOCG 2004
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Description
Tasting notes
Reviewed by: James Suckling
This is drinking a little tight at the moment. Still, the bright and decadent fruit give way to nice chewy tannins. Very complex, full bodied, and balanced. This needs some time to come back around. Drink this after 2012.
Reviewed by: James Suckling
A full-bodied, firm and chewy wine with very polished and caressing, juicy tannins. Shows youth and prowess in its structure. Flavorful and persistent. Drink now, but better in two or three years.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Valdicava’s 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is an incredibly nuanced, refined Brunello made in a less obvious style than the 1999 or the 2001 although it shares some stylistic similarities with those vintages. Today the wine presents a weightless, almost Burgundian personality, although it should fill out over the next few years. This is an utterly convincing, spellbinding Madonna del Piano that relies more on elegance and finesse rather than sheer power. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2026. Valdicava has been somewhat of a controversial property over the last few years. The Brunellos are typically very concentrated and dense when young, which can make them hard to assess. Make no mistake about it though; these are very serious wines whose only difficulty lies in giving them a few more years in bottle than the vast majority of Brunellos. A vertical tasting last year going back to 1988 published on www.erobertparker.com showed that the Valdicava Brunellos age exquisitely. Importer: Vinifera Imports, Ronkonkoma, NY; tel. (631) 467-5907
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano continues to develop very positively. This huge, concentrated Madonna del Piano dazzles for the richness of its fruit and the delineation of its aromas. The clean, vibrant finish suggests many years of cellaring potential. The Valdicava Brunellos are often misunderstood when young because they possess so much richness, but with time in bottle the wines turn more delicate and complete. Anticipated maturity: 2014-2029. Vincenzo Abbruzzese is one of the most outspoken, passionate growers in Montalcino. His beautifully tended vineyards yield some of the richest wines in the region; and that’s where most of the focus is – on the vineyards. The winery itself is unremarkable and is equipped with just the bare essentials. All of the wines are aged in large, neutral oak; what comes through is Abbruzzese’s commitment to low yields, sustainable farming and non-interventionalist winemaking. Unfortunately I was not able to taste the 2008 Rosso in bottle, but several samples tasted from tank and cask seemed quite promising. Importer: Vinifera Imports, Ronkonkoma, NY; tel. (631) 467-5907
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Valdicava’s 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is still in cask. This is an incredibly nuanced, refined Brunello made in a less obvious style than the 1999 or the 2001 although it shares some stylistic similarities with those vintages. Today the wine presents a weightless, almost Burgundian personality, although it should fill out over the next few years. This is an utterly convincing, spellbinding Madonna del Piano that relies more on elegance and finesse rather than sheer power. Anticipated maturity: 2010-2026.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is powerful, deeply colored and still carrying a considerable amount of tannic heft for a twelve year old wine. Dark cherry, plum, smoke, tobacco, scorched earth and licorice give the wine much of its distinctive virile personality. The Madonna del Piano is one of the bigger, brawnier 2004s readers will come across. As such, it needs to be served alongside similarly rich, hearty cuisines.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
The 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is a wine that continues to develop very positively. This huge, concentrated Madonna del Piano dazzles for the richness of its fruit and the delineation of its aromas. The Valdicava Brunellos are often misunderstood when young because they possess so much richness but with time in the bottle the wine turns much more delicate and complete. The clean, vibrant finish suggests many years of cellaring potential.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Valdicava's 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is an incredibly nuanced, refined Brunello made in a less obvious style than the 1999 or the 2001 although it shares some stylistic similarities with those vintages. Today the wine presents a weightless, almost Burgundian personality, although it should fill out over the next few years. This is an utterly convincing, spellbinding Madonna del Piano that relies more on elegance and finesse rather than sheer power.
Reviewed by: Antonio Galloni
Valdicava's 2004 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is still in cask. This is an incredibly nuanced, refined Brunello made in a less obvious style than the 1999 or the 2001 although it shares some stylistic similarities with those vintages. Today the wine presents a weightless, almost Burgundian personality, although it should fill out over the next few years. This is an utterly convincing, spellbinding Madonna del Piano that relies more on elegance and finesse rather than sheer power.
About the Producer
Valdicava is located in the town of Montalcino in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is a boutique winery producing top Brunello wines. In 1953, Martini Bramante bought the land on which the Wadi Cava winery now stands, north of the town of Montalcino. At first, he just planted grapes and sold them to Biondi Santi winery. It was not until 1968 that he launched his own wine for the first time. Later, Vincenzo Abbruzzese, Martini's grandson, took over the Wadi Cava winery. Today, the winery has entered a golden age of development under the leadership of Vincenzo. Wadi Kava Winery is located at 43 degrees north latitude, influenced by the surrounding ocean and mountains, the local climate is relatively mild, and the rainfall is moderate throughout the year. In addition, the cool breeze brought by the nearby mountains and forests also properly adjusted the local temperature. The winery occupies a total of 333 acres, including 67 acres of vineyards. The winery's staff take good care of the vineyards, but do not provide too much nutrients and water to the vines. This is to promote the vines to take root deep in the soil, thus making the resulting grapes more flavorful and expressive. local terroir. The vineyard is divided into 9 plots. During the grape ripening season, the grapes from different plots will be mined and harvested, and placed in different oak barrels to be broken and fermented, and then Vincenzo will brew according to the desired wine. The style of the wine is adjusted. The blended wine is then aged in Slovenian oak barrels. Vincenzo combines traditional and modern Brunello winemaking techniques to produce wines that are both Brunello and Wadi Cava's own. The annual output of Vadikawa winery is about 6,000 cases, and only 3 wines are produced, namely Valdicava Rosso di Montalcino, Valdicava Rosso di Montalcino, Valdicava Brunello. (Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino) and Valdicava Brunello Riserva Madonna del Piano. Among them, the Wadi Cava Brunello Reserve dry red wine is only made in excellent years, and the output is usually only 800 cases. Both the 2006 and 2015 vintages received full marks from renowned wine critic James Suckling. The 2001 wine was awarded full marks by both James and Wine Spectator.
