Winemaker Notes
The "80" bottling, named for the year in which the Lapinis replanted the vineyard, is a declassified Chianti Classico Riserva. In great contrast to the many oaky, alcoholic Super Tuscans, Campriano proposes a 'Super Tuscan' based solely on terroir—the family’s finest vineyard site, planted to 100% Sangiovese, and declassified to set it apart from their other wines. Overlooking the town of Greve below and the Chianti hills in the distance, this half-acre plot sits at altitude on galestro schist and limestone. There is a purity, wildness, and vivid fruit rarely found in Sangiovese. Its sinewy tannins give something to chew on, while an invigorating iron-like minerality lifts the whole to another level. Concentrated and intense yet elegant and refined, the "80" is made for the dinner table and built to last. You’ll want to get acquainted with Podere Campriano to taste a 'Super Tuscan' that makes a loud statement about where it comes from.
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.