2019 Capanna Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Tuscany 750 ml

There are some wines that you taste once and will never forget. For us, Capanna's 2019 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva is one of those special bottles. From a 2019 season that Vinous called "the vintage we've all been waiting for," it's a superlative edition of a wine that's been a member-favorite for years. It boasts 97 points from Decanter World Wine Awards, plus 96-point scores from both Jeb Dunnuck and James Suckling. 

Owned by the Cencioni family since 1957, Capanna was one of the first estates to usher in Brunello's modern era—and this isn't an exaggeration: Patriarch Giuseppe Cencioni was one of 25 founders of the Consorzio del Vino Brunello di Montalcino. The Capanna estate sits on the hill of Montosoli, perhaps the most famed terroir in the Brunello zone, where the vines enjoy Tuscany's prized *galestro *soil and a southeasterly exposure ideal for soaking up the bright sun. 

Still a family-run affair after more than six decades, Capanna avails itself of the services of consulting oenologist Paolo Vagaggini. He has not only been recruited to guide the Sangiovese program at the University of Bordeaux, but counts Fuligni and the iconic Biondi-Santi among his Brunello clients. With 5/5 stars from Decanter, 98 points from Wine Spectator, and praise from every corner of the wine world, the 2019 Brunello vintage is being feted as a modern classic. 

Vagaggini fermented this wine on the skins for nearly a month, before giving it three-plus years in Slavonian oak casks that range from 1,000 to 3,200 liters, then over 15 months in bottle. The result is the kind of beguiling Brunello Riserva that will reward decades in the cellar.