Barone Ricasoli is the largest land holders in the Chianti Classico region and this enables them to produce such superb quality at very fair prices. This is a blend of 80% Sangiovese and 20% Merlot that has spent nine months in barriques (70%) and tonneaux (30%) with a further year bottle aging prior to release. Perhaps not quite the impact of the 2007, it isn't far off. It's a deliciously juicy wine with dark currant, roasted meat and subtle smoky notes; it's fleshy yet with good savouriness and glossy tannins. Lovely. "Dark red. Intense aromas of balsamic black cherry and plum, complicated by licorice and underbrush nuances. Rich, sweet, and dense, with a velvety texture to the red fruit and underbrush flavors. Although this really does exhibit sangiovese's pretty red fruit aromas and flavors and seems concentrated enough to be a Riserva, it could use a touch more length. An amazing result for a wine made in huge quantity (roughly 700,000 bottles a year, depending on the vintage). I should point out that at Barone Ricasoli, long referred to as Brolio or Castello di Brolio, much work has been done in recent years to improve all the wines in the line-up. This wine may not have the complexity or length for an outstanding rating, but it's so juicy and drinkable that I don't want to be stingy." 90 points Stephen Tanzer's International Wine Cellar, Jul/Aug 10