The Uccelliera 2016 Brunello di Montalcino opens to dark fruit and wild cherry with warmer tones of cured tobacco, spice and potting soil. It shows the extra density, darkness and richness that comes so beautifully to fruit grown on the sun-drenched southern side of Castelnuovo dell'Abate in the southern half of the appellation. What Uccelliera delivers so carefully, vintage after vintage, is a truly exceptional sense of mouthfeel with textural richness and lingering creaminess. It is also one of the wines that consistently shows a sense of place. This is a touchstone estate for this specific Montalcino microclimate.

96 points, Wine Advocate (December 2020)

The 2016 Brunello di Montalcino blends richness, ripeness and refinement to create a model of total balance. At first, it’s dark, earthy and herbal; yet with time in the glass, a massive wave of black cherry, raspberry, sage and a grounding note of undergrowth comes forward. In the mouth, it coats all that it touches in silky, cool-toned textures, giving way to ripe red/black fruits complemented by spiced citrus, as nuances of lavender and tobacco form. While this feels round and pliant throughout, fine-grain tannins slowly saturate, sneaking up and reminding you of just how young the 2016 really is today. Hints of baker’s chocolate, licorice and a twang of tart blackberry resonate - wow, does it ever end?

96+ points, Eric Guido, Vinous (November 2020)

This is really beautiful with complex black cherry, berry, walnut and dark chocolate. Some mushroom and smoke. It’s tight and reserved with polished tannins and wonderful balance and finesse. Persistent and intense.

97 points, JamesSuckling.com (October 2020)

The 2016 Brunello di Montalcino is sourced from three vineyard sites in Castelnuovo dell’Abate and spent three years in French and Slavonian oak of various sizes. It offers very pretty, soft floral aromatics of violet, black raspberry, and sweet baking spice. Structurally, the palate is plush and round on the mid-palate, with soft tannins and generous warmth, but without excessive weight. Enjoy over the next 15 or more years.

95 points, JebDunnuck.com (March 2021)

Burly tannins put a grip on the black cherry, black currant, plum, earth and tobacco flavors in this dense version, yet it's also vibrant, building to a lingering finish. All the components are in the right place, so this should come together nicely over time. Best from 2024 through 2045.

95 points, Wine Spectator (June 2021)

The Ravera cru is seeing renewed energy and interest, thanks to the hard work of the Elvio Cogno team. They believed in Novello from the very beginning, and today a wine like the 2017 Barolo Ravera shows special confidence and pride. This pretty Barolo made with a blend of Nebbiolo clones (Lampia and Michet) reveals a slow succession of aromas with dark cherry and blackberry. The results are lasting, contoured and beautifully focused, thanks to mineral notes of rusty iron or brick. Nuanced notes of licorice and campfire ash round off the finish.

94 points, Wine Advocate (June 2021)

Cherry and candied strawberry with flowers and some dried earth. Full-bodied, layered and chewy. Lots of wet earth and mushroom to the red fruit. Tight now. Try after 2023.

94 points, JamesSuckling.com (March 2021)

The 2017 Barolo Ravera makes a statement with its intense aromas of licorice, kirsch, pipe tobacco, and spice. Revealing a balanced and chiseled structure, the palate conveys dried raspberry, blood orange, and dried herbs. A great wine from the 2017 vintage, it feels like it will hold up to the test of time. Drink 2024-2042.

97 points, JebDunnuck.com (May 2021)

Made by the estate that put this celebrated cru on the map, and showing an enviable combination of elegance and power, this stunning wine opens with aromas of wild berries, underbrush, dark spice and balsamic notes of cedar and new leather. The tense, savory palate is loaded with youthful energy, showing succulent Marasca cherry, raspberry, cinnamon and star anise framed in tightly knit, refined tannins and surprisingly bright acidity for the vintage. A mineral note suggesting iron adds depth to the close.

98 points, Wine Enthusiast (January 2021)

This is incredibly deep and tight with dried rose petals, cedar and light plums and strawberries on the nose. The palate is refined and firm with precise balance of fruit, tannin and acidity. This is the first vintage. 50% of this comes from Voerzio crus and the rest comes from an area called Boiolo, near Brunate and Rocche dell’Annunziata. Wonderful balance and depth.

95 points, JamesSuckling.com (September 2019)

The 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva offers rich darkness and lots of blackberry fruit and plum. The wine shows an accessible and open personality, putting all its beauty right out there for you to admire. Unlike the more mercurial and shape-shifting 2016 vintage, this expression from 2015 delivers frankness and naked beauty. The tannins are soft and ripe, and the wine is just raring to go, without delay, next to a hearty serving of Bistecca alla Fiorentina. This wine is aged in Slavonian oak casks for an extended 44 months, and 12,000 bottles (including large formats) will be released in January 2021.

95 points, Wine Advocate (December 2020)

The 2015 Capanna Brunello di Montalcino Riserva does an excellent job of marrying the ripeness of the year to their dark, alluring, yet traditional house style. Crushed cherries are offset by exotic savory spice, citrus rinds and sweet herbs. It’s deeply textural, enveloping all that it touches in silky waves of red and black fruit, with nervous acids contrasting its creamy persona, as grippy tannins form toward the close. Its heroic structure looms, yet it does so with an amazing lingering freshness as well. This formidable Brunello Riserva will pay dividends in your cellar. This was tasted over the course of two days with no sign of decline.

96 points, Eric Guido, Vinous (November 2020)

Exotic aromas of crushed cherries and berries with flowers, bark and some black mushrooms. It’s full-bodied and very deep with wonderful length and power. A very typical and well structured, top 2015. One of the best ever from here. Drink after 2025.

97 points, JamesSuckling.com (December 2020)

The 2015 Brunello di Montalcino Riserva is forward, with heady aromatics of tar, licorice, and sweet tobacco as well as underlying blackberry fruit and dried flowers. Ripe with a Mediterranean feel, the palate is generous and fruit-forward with black cherry, tea leaf, and dark-mineral earth. The tannins are muscular and ripe, though the wine is balanced in its powerful yet traditional structure. This is an exceptional wine that will be wonderful to watch in its evolution. Cellar and drink 2026-2042.

97 points, JebDunnuck.com (March 2021)

Balsamic aromas of camphor mingle with new leather, sunbaked earth and rose. Full bodied and enveloping, the palate offers grilled porcini, dried cherry and tobacco alongside compact, velvety tannins. Drink 2023–2030.

93 points, Wine Enthusiast (May 2021)

Showing darker and slightly more saturated fruit, the Sottimano 2016 Barbaresco Currá is a more robust and amply endowed wine compared to the other single-vineyard expressions in this portfolio. Drawing its fruit from the village of Neive, the Currá offers ripe berry and redcurrant with softer tones of spice and tilled earth. The wine's concentration and richness are an absolute pleasure, and you could direct this bottle to a heavier roasted meat dish when the time is right. Fruit is drawn from a 1.5-hectare plot in Neive.

96+ points, Wine Advocate (June 2021)

The 2016 Barbaresco Currà is energetic and tense, but it also shows a bit more oak influence than the other Barbarescos in the range. That should not be a huge issue, as the Currà is always slow to mature. Floral and spiced notes bring added lift as this detailed, finely sculpted Barbaresco opens up. Constantly changing in the glass, the Currà captures all the mystique and intrigue that are such essential attributes of top-notch, fine Nebbiolo. I loved it.

95+ points, Vinous (October 2018)

The 2016 Barbaresco Curra is ripe with brushed leather, sun-baked red plum, menthol, and cedar. The palate has balanced structure, with ripe cherry, black truffle, and dried orange, and firm tannic grip on the finish. Drink 2023-2038.

95 points, JebDunnuck.com (May 2021)

A beefy style, this red buries its cherry, iron and menthol flavors in a matrix of thick tannins. The vivid acidity works in tandem, yet in the end, there's an equilibrium of all the elements, with the fruit reemerging. Best from 2025 through 2042.

94 points, Wine Spectator (November 2021)

Menthol, ripe dark-skinned fruit and star anise aromas mingle with espresso on this linear, full-bodied red. The palate is structured and still youthfully austere, featuring Marasca cherry, pomegranate, licorice and French oak sensations. Assertive, close-grained tannins provide firm support. Give it time to fully develop. Drink 2026–2036.

94 points, Wine Enthusiast (December 2021)