Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Soldera 2004

The late Gianfranco Soldera was a visionary producer of some the purest and most ethereal expressions of Brunello di Montalcino. A former insurance broker, Soldera purchased his Case Basse estate in 1972. Until his death in 2019 at the age of 82, he was a zealous guardian of its unique terroir and the wines it produced.

With his botanist wife, Graziella, Soldera created Case Basse as an extraordinary ecosystem, including a two-hectare botanical park with more than 1,500 unique rose varieties, and a habitat for insect species that predate on vine parasites – thus allowing Soldera to forgo pesticides in his vineyards.

Beyond terroir, Soldera believed that the most important element for creating truly great wines was time. In practice, this meant slow fermentations (for a month or more), solely of free-run juice only, in large old slavonian oak vats without temperature control, followed by extended maturation in the same vessels – lasting up to six years for the flagship riserva bottlings.

With their trademark structure, hedonistic richness and beguiling aromatics, the wines of Soldera are unmistakeable. To have the opportunity to taste one at the peak of its maturity (such as the exquisite 1990), is a rare pleasure.