Winemaker Notes
Deep ruby red color. The nose, unmistakable but elegant, expresses the complexity of floral aromas and ripe red fruit, licorice, vanilla and chocolate.The palate is full and rich with soft, velvety tannins. The after-smell is generously persistent. The most authentic expression of the terroir of “Brolio”.
Blend: 90% Sangiovese, 5% Cabernet Sauvignon, 5% Petit Verdot
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A fresh and linear Gran Selezione Chianti Classico with firm and chewy tannins and dark fruits. Full body. Structured. Give it two or three years to come together.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Castello di Brolio takes a few minutes to open and settle in the glass. The bouquet here is redolent of pressed cherry and dried blackberry with underbrush, dark spice, forest floor and even a touch of wild porcino mushroom. The mouthfeel is smooth and loosely textured, which gives the wine an accessible and immediate personality. These vineyard sites in Gaiole in Chianti are characterized by crushed alberese rock soils. These unique growing conditions always add to the focus and the sharpness of the aromas. This wine is a blend of 90% Sangiovese with 5% Cabernet Sauvignon and 5% Petit Verdot.
Rating: 93+ -
Wine Spectator
Sweet, ripe cherry and raspberry flavors define this Chianti Classico from start to finish, augmented by almond, iron and tar accents, with a hefty dose of grainy tannins. All the elements come together on the juicy aftertaste. Best from 2021 through 2036.
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Wine & Spirits
This is a blend of sangiovese, with five percent each cabernet sauvignon and petit verdot, selected from the best parcels of this estate’s 560 acres. The wine’s ripe flavors of dark cherry and plum reflect the warmth of the 2015 vintage, its fruit tones enriched by subtle spice and loamy earth tones.
Among Italy's elite red grape varieties, Sangiovese has the perfect intersection of bright red fruit and savory earthiness and is responsible for the best red wines of Tuscany. While it is best known as the chief component of Chianti, it is also the main grape in Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and reaches the height of its power and intensity in the complex, long-lived Brunello di Montalcino. Somm Secret—Sangiovese doubles under the alias, Nielluccio, on the French island of Corsica where it produces distinctly floral and refreshing reds and rosés.
One of the first wine regions anywhere to be officially recognized and delimited, Chianti Classico is today what was originally defined simply as Chianti. Already identified by the early 18th century as a superior zone, the official name of Chianti was proclaimed upon the area surrounding the townships of Castellina, Radda and Gaiole, just north of Siena, by Cosimo III, Grand Duke of Tuscany in an official decree in 1716.
However, by the 1930s the Italian government had appended this historic zone with additonal land in order to capitalize on the Chianti name. It wasn’t until 1996 that Chianti Classico became autonomous once again when the government granted a separate DOCG (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita) to its borders. Ever since, Chianti Classico considers itself no longer a subzone of Chianti.
Many Classicos are today made of 100% Sangiovese but can include up to 20% of other approved varieties grown within the Classico borders. The best Classicos will have a bright acidity, supple tannins and be full-bodied with plenty of ripe fruit (plums, black cherry, blackberry). Also common among the best Classicos are expressive notes of cedar, dried herbs, fennel, balsamic or tobacco.