Winemaker Notes
This Sangiovese shows an intense ruby-red color and a fresh, fruity bouquet with pronounced notes of cherries and flowers. The palate is round, soft, and flavorful, offering excellent balance and a long, elegant finish—an inviting and authentic expression of the variety.
It pairs traditionally with red meats (both roasted and cured), game, and mature cheeses, while also complementing Mediterranean first courses in modern cuisine.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Enthusiast
Sweet cherries, vanilla, fresh brewed coffee, earth and herbs on the nose cohere with a palate of fresh tart berries, earl grey tea and more soil and herbs, while a current of acid flows over tannins which is firm and structured, yet also polished smooth.
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Wine Spectator
Showing dark fruit tones of black cherry and blackberry, this red is lively yet taut. A bit compact now, needing some time to reveal the depth of its fruit. Floral, graphite and berry notes linger on the crisp, mouthwatering aftertaste. Best from 2027 through 2043.
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James Suckling
A mouth-wateringly fresh Chianti with aromas of raspberries, sour cherries, lavender, citrus peel and green olives. Medium-bodied, tangy and elegant, with fine tannins and a zesty finish. Drink or hold.
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.