Castello dei Rampolla Vigna d' Alceo 2013

Falstaff: Rich, vibrant ruby with a slight purple sheen. Dense and deep on the palate, initially notes of ink and some iodine, then lots of blackberry and cassis with cedar spice in the background. Blooms magnificently on the palate with stacks of sweet fruit like elderberry and blackberry. Opens with pronounced tannins enveloped in this sweetness, builds wonderfully, then offers fine dark chocolate on the finish. 97/100

Suckling: Strawberry, plums, chocolate and green pepper frame this beautiful red. So much black currant too. Full-bodied with round, mouth-coating tannins. So much going on here. A blend of cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot. Better in 2021. 96/100

Galloni: Readers should do whatever they can to get their hands on a few bottles of the 2013 d'Alceo. Seamless and voluptuous in the glass, it is an epic wine that embodies all the qualities that make these terraced vineyards in Panzano so special. Blackberry jam, crème de cassis, plum, licorice and spice meld together in the glass, but it is the wine's textural intensity that elevates it into the realm of the profound. The 2013 has been nothing short of moving on the two occasions I tasted it recently. (100/100, 2017)