1983 Biondi-Santi Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva Tenuta ‘Greppo’ Museum Release 750ml

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1983 Biondi-Santi Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Tenuta “Greppo” Museum Release 750ml

The 1983 Brunello Di Montalcino Riserva is in a spectacular place today and is showing better than many younger Brunellos I tasted on this trip. It offers a notable polish that, while subtle, sets this vintage apart from others, with a savory nose of flint, wet stones, tobacco, black cherries, dark chocolate, and licorice and a depth that remains weightless in the glass. Medium to full-bodied, it floats on the palate with superb length, still holding freshness and energy while offering more mature nuance and a gently supple feel. It’s at or near its peak, but it has the structure to continue to hold well for another decade. Drink 2026-2040. (98) JEB DUNNUCK, tasted 2026

1983 was the year of the retirement of Bjorn Borg after winning Wimbledon five times; and the general election in the UK confirmed the majority of the conservatives of Margaret Thatcher. In this year in Montalcino, Franco Biondi-Santi changed his old oak vessels, producing a classical gem of modern oenology. The vintage was classic. The crystalline ruby-garnet colour is resonating out of the glass with rhubarb candy, fresh violet, juniper berry and potpourri. The attack is still firm and zesty, with a delicately sour strawberry flavour and fierce chalky tannins, thick on the finish. Balanced in an austere way, it’s like driving a classic car: it needs time, expertise and passion! (96) ALDO FIORDELLI, Decanter, tasted 2020

This is a cerebral and emotionally stirring wine that brings us back to a very different, more innocent time in the quickly evolving timeline of this mighty wine appellation in southern Tuscany. The 1983 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva is a brilliant but naked wine that reminds us of the original blueprint for Brunello, a wine made with a specific clone of Sangiovese that was selected for its long aging potential. Despite all that time in bottle, this wine presents stunning purity and clarity of fruit. It is polished and glossy in the mouth with tannins that have been softened by time. A bright moment of acidic freshness reminds us that this wine is still very much alive. (97+) MONICA LARNER, tasted 2019

This compelling 38-year old – recently released from the estate – boasts layers of complexity, depth and energy. Although it changes continuously in the glass, it features tertiary aromas of flint and tar along with pressed rose, truffle and a whiff of game. The smooth, elegant palate is remarkably fresh for its age, delivering dried cherry, spiced cranberry, tobacco and a light hint of game alongside silky tannins. Tangy acidity carries on through savory mineral close. A rare and rewarding experience. (97) KERIN OKEEFE

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. (97) ERIC GUIDO, Tasted 2021

A dark and deep wine with tertiary aromas of prunes, black truffles, meat, potpourri, earth, minerals, mint and balsamic. Full-bodied with condensed tannins, energetic acidity and a chalky finish with fresh prunes. Juicy, long and savory with tension (97) JAMES SUCKLING, Tasted 2026