“The 2008 Poggio ai Merli (Merlot) comes across as deep, powerful and inward. It shows surprising depth and richness for the vintage, but like a lot of 2008s, it is very, very tight. The 2008 needs at least a few more years in the cellar. I will not at all be shocked if the Poggio ai Merli ends up better than this note suggests. Sweet herbs, flowers and French oak with a distinctly Tuscan accent linger on the explosive finish. The Poggio ai Merli was aged in French oak barrels, one-third new.”
— Wine Advocate, Jun 2012

The initially closed nose offers fresh black plum, bay leaf and milk chocolate with aeration. Enters the mouth creamy and rich, showing enticing flavors of dark berries, minerals and chocolate. The finish features youthfully chewy tannins that are considerably smoother than some overextracted vintages of the past, and a pretty violet note.
— International Wine Cellar, Jul 2010