2006 Valdicava Brunello di Montalcino Madonna del Piano Riserva MAGNUM

(96 points) The 2006 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Madonna del Piano is a huge, towering wine. Waves of vibrant, intensely perfumed fruit hit the palate, backed up by the firm, broad tannins of the vintage. Violets, spices, new leather and licorice develop in the glass, yet the 2006 remains painfully young and stubborn. Clean mineral notes frame a blast of dark cherries, plums and camphor on the palate-staining finish. Readers will need to be especially patient, but the 2006 Madonna del Piano is stacking up to be one of the all-time greats from proprietor Vincenzo Abbruzzese. I followed the wine over the course of two days, during which it continued to improve while seeming to gain freshness and structure. Anticipated maturity: 2016-2026. Wine Advocate #200 Apr 2012

Wine Watch Review:  Very complex bouquet of dried porcini, black tar and licorice spice damp dark earth dark coco and wild strawberry jam like fruit very concentrated and rich bouquet with lots of minerality.  A bit musty on the tongue with firm tannins here also this wine seems a bit corked with some of that terroir but that musty nuance is a bit more prevalent on the palate.  The second bottle was perfect and a candidate for wine of the night.  Without the musty note all the other nuance in the wine was really singing.  The tannins are a bit overwhelming at the moment but this wine has layers of flavor and intense concentration and depth of flavors.  Finish 50 +  KILLER