Brunello di Montalcino White Label, Casanova di Neri 2021 75cl

The White Label — Etichetta Bianca — is where Casanova di Neri's Brunello story really begins. It has been made since 1978, the estate's classic multi-vineyard bottling that sits above the Rosso and below the single-vineyard crus like Cerretalto. This 2021 was matured for 42 months in large oak casks, comfortably beyond the five years Brunello demands, and reached the market only in January 2026.

Montalcino's 2018 was a vintage of poise: a spring frost cut yields, and the wines that emerged combined ripe fruit with firm, well-drawn tannins and genuine freshness. That balance is written all over this wine, which is 100% Sangiovese at 14.5%.

On the estate's own reckoning it pours a deep, brilliant red and opens with small berries and a herbal lift of bay leaf, sage and juniper. The palate is the surprise — juicy and elegant at once, structured and long, with what the family fairly calls splendid tannins and a spicy, linear finish. Being so freshly released, it is tightly wound; a little patience or a lot of air pays off.

At £60 this is honest, benchmark Brunello from a top address at a price that undercuts a lot of its neighbours. Drink from 2027 onwards; it will hold and improve well into the late 2030s.

How to Serve

Serve at 16 to 17°C. Give a young bottle one to two hours in a decanter, or lay it down. A large bowl helps the aromatics.

Where to Drink It

The River Cafe for classic Italian dining. Bentley's if you want something rich alongside game. Planque in Haggerston for a more freewheeling wine-led supper.

Food Pairings

Bistecca alla Fiorentina is the textbook match. A plate of wild boar ragù would be no hardship either.