Once again, I preferred the 2002 Masseto to the 2003, a wine that showed all of the excess weight, heaviness and opulence of the torrid vintage. Elegance and silkiness remain the hallmarks of the 2004 Masseto, and those qualities came through in spades on this night. -- Antonio Galloni

A challenging vintage that started well but from August 10 was impacted by rain. At almost 20 years old, this majors on white truffle, spice, balsamic and cassis liqueur. Still delivering pleasure, tertiary character with raspberry, wild strawberry, oyster shell and cold ash aromatics, smoked earth and softened tannins. This is ready to drink and to enjoy over the next five to 10 years. 100% new oak, but for six months less than the usual 24 to ensure it remained balanced.

Robert Parker''s Wine Advocate 28/02/2007

The 2002 Masseto is a strong effort, made all the more notable given the poor overall quality of the vintage. It presents an herbal profile on the nose along with notes of tobacco, black pepper and white truffle that emerge with some time in the glass. On the palate it is a decidedly slender Masseto, with less concentration than is typical of this wine, but the fruit is vibrant and fresh, the oak well-integrated, and it offers much persistence as well as length in a more linear expression of this wine. While the 2002 will never compete with the best Massetos, on an absolute level it is a lovely wine that clearly has the potential to offer some surprises down the road. Anticipated maturity: 2008-2017.

The 2002 is another eye-opening wine. The year is mostly remembered for its cool, wet summer and a number of dilute, uninteresting wines. Not here. The 2002 Masseto will go down as one of the handful of truly great wines made that year. I imagine in ten or twenty years it will be fascinating to taste alongside Miani’s Merlot, Soldera’s Brunello Riserva and Conterno’s Monfortino. There is no question the wine is in that league. Today the 2002 remains a baby, with tons of depth in its dark fruit. Hints of rose petal and spice develop in the glass, adding further complexity. There is plenty of structure underneath, suggesting the 2002 will be a very long-lived wine. Today, it is a knock-out. Anticipated maturity: 2012-2022. (95+)

Aromas of berries and fresh herbs such as basil. Turns to flowers. Medium- to full-bodied, with very silky tannins and a long caressing finish. Beautiful 2002. Better than I remember from barrel. Merlot. Best after 2005. 2,750 cases made