1983 Brunello di Montalcino, La Storica, Riserva, Biondi-Santi, Tuscany, Italy

The Brunello was fresh and firm with powerful aromas and flavors of blueberries and mushrooms. It had a tanned leather undertone. It was very tannic yet fresh and beautiful. It was very silky.

The 1983 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva La Storica is spellbinding, with an eyes-rolling-back-in-your-head display of crushed rocks, dried cherries and plums, complemented by notes of mint, cedar spice box and autumn leaves. You could lose yourself in the bouquet, but then you’d miss the elegant textures and how they wash across the palate, carrying zesty red fruits motivated by earthy mineral tones and bright acidity that keeps the expression remarkably fresh. Frankly, it’s amazing to think that this is a 38-year-old Brunello, as the 1983 finishes remarkably long and with the slightest hint of tannins still remaining, and nuances of clove, balsam herbs and rosy florals lingering on. Bravo. La Storica is a library-release program direct from the winery, with a sticker on the back and a numbered tag around the neck of the bottle to identify it as such. This is a bottling that was reconditioned by Franco Biondi Santi himself in the year 2000. Only 550 bottles were rereleased. It’s also important to note that this was the first vintage that the Riserva was made in the then-new winery and fermented in large, vertical oak vats, as opposed to concrete. It’s a gorgeous expression of time and place.

This precious bottle is part of Biondi-Santi's late-release program for collectors (I tasted bottle number 10,723). The 1983 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva is showing beautifully on its aging timeline, although this bottle is slightly more evolved since I last tasted this vintage in 2019 before the pandemic. With slow and measured determination, the bouquet embraces dried fig, cured bresaola, burnt caramel, wet campfire, dried oregano and a familiar aroma that reminds me of the Florence leather market. However, there is a lot of life and vertical lift in this Riserva, thanks in great part to the beautiful freshness that keeps the tannins alive and adds a pop of pretty acidity to the close. The wine shows its age with pride and grace, and the final results are quite spectacular. In fact, I'm opening the drinking window up by an additional five years thanks to the latitude and depth shown here.

A description of the 1983 vintage provided by the estate: ‘A temperate spring with frequent rainfalls led to an early summer, which remained dry and very hot from June to September. Harvest started approximately 10 days earlier than usual, due to the early ripening of the grapes.’ Aged in large Slavonian oak casks for three years. Waxed cork underneath foil. ‘Shipped from Tenuta Greppo on 04/2021.’ Selected from the ‘La Storica’ – the Biondi-Santi Riserva wine library at Tenuta Greppo. Bottle number 10,727. Topped up and recorked 29 December 2000. Day one: Lustrous mature ruby with brickstone rim. At first the mature Biondi-Santi wines always show a little oxidative character with hints of tobacco and dried fruit on the nose right after opening, which can set you completely on the wrong foot. With aeration that oxidative mist lifts to show a core of balsamic cherry fruit with the merest hint of chalky minerally notes. Depth and complexity but really shy. Racy and at the same time waxy layered red fruit with gorgeous powdery tannins. Very deep and long yet still not showing it all. A long nerve of acidity runs all the way through. Day two: Mature ruby with bright brickstone rim. A complex, sweetly perfumed nose of dried cherry, iron, sweet spice and with hints of black pepper. The spectrum of aromas is a little oxidative, but it hasn't progressed much since yesterday. The more you swirl, the purer the nose becomes. Deep cherry fruit. Gorgeous sappy elegant and lively cherry fruit palate, truly light of touch, transparent iron and sour-cherry finish of great elegance. Framed by long, gripping powdery tannins. Perhaps a tad less persistent than yesterday, but more multi-layered on the finish. Day three: Mature mid ruby with bright bricky rim. Firm cherry and fruit-cake nose of great depth. A little more oxidative but not deteriorated at all, though I can imagine this is not to everyone’s taste. Racy sappy fruit that has lost a little of its length and persistence, yet still manages to balance out the gripping powdery tannins. The acidity has become more marked on the finish. Still compelling, but was more complete the day before.