Description

In southern Chianti Classico, this estate is 650 hectares of which 140ha are vines. 100% Sangiovese fermentation in tank followed by 80% maturation in 60 or 90hl botti & 20% barrique. These wines are quite traditional in style and all the more lovely for that. Their whole range is worth seeking out, from Toscana IGT to Chianti Classico Riserva.

Earthy, savoury, restrained and elegant. This wine represents a pure and old school expression of Sangio. Mineral, dark fruits, hints of cherry and rose petal, a smokey/hung meat note and much more beyond that. The acid and tannin on this wine are prominent but not out of hand. In a line up of more modern Chianti it got a bit out muscled but the intrinsic quality and balance of this wine means it will last for a long time in your cellar.

Sangiovese

Cultivated from Emilia-Romagna to Campania and producing as much wine as Barbera. You see a wide range of clones and hugely diverse growing conditions. Therefore the variety represents easy drinking ‘quaffers’, all the way to world benchmarks. The best regions include Brunello di Montalcino, Chianti, Sangiovese di Romagna and Morellino di Scansano.

Chianti Classico DOCG

Italy’s most famous wine region. Beautiful lightly wooded rolling hills covered in vineyards, olive groves and cypress trees. The reds from Chianti Classico received its greatest boost in quality from being awarded the much more stringent DOCG rating.

Central Italy

When most people think of Central Italy they think of Tuscany. Not surprisingly because Chianti is an ocean of vineyards within the winegrowing region of Central Tuscany. Chianti produces more than 750000 hectolitres of wine each year. Tuscany’s wine history starts somewhere in the 8^th-5^th Century BCE when it was part of Etruria. Vernaccia from San Gimignano and reds from Montepulciano were known and loved before the Renaissance. The Tuscany we know now started in 19^th Century with Chianti gaining the ascendancy. Brunello di Montalcino debuted in 1888 and the Super Tuscans took shape in the 1960s, 70s and 80s.

Beyond Tuscany, there are the magical places of Emilia-Romagna, Marche, Abruzzo and Umbria. Each place has its own history and personality that really deserve a night of their own. Better still, a few nights in situ.