Capannelle Chardonnay Toscana 2011
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No expense has been spared to outdo the most state-of-the-art criteria: from the underground winery itself (1,000 square meters - nearly 10,800 square feet - of shock-proof ceramic tiles, to the subterranean barrique cellar, built in the year 2000 - 40 meters long (over 130 feet), 3 meters (almost 10 feet) below ground level, dug into the natural rock.
Yet for all these futuristic aspects, the Capannelle building itself is a characteristic chiantigiana stonehouse villa on one of the appellation's gentle hilltops, overlooking Gaiole on one side, vines and woodland on the other. In other words: classic and timeless. The range itself, styled by oenologist Simone Monciatti, is fortunately as rooted in this 17th-century terrain and millenary tradition as in the most modern quality standards. Its hallmark is elegance: the concentration and extract of low-crop noble varieties are complemented by a nose of great finesse and complexity.
One of the most popular and versatile white wine grapes, Chardonnay offers a wide range of flavors and styles depending on where it is grown and how it is made. While it tends to flourish in most environments, Chardonnay from its Burgundian homeland produces some of the most remarkable and longest lived examples. California produces both oaky, buttery styles and leaner, European-inspired wines. Somm Secret—The Burgundian subregion of Chablis, while typically using older oak barrels, produces a bright style similar to the unoaked style. Anyone who doesn't like oaky Chardonnay would likely enjoy Chablis.
One of the most iconic Italian regions for wine, scenery and history, Tuscany is the world’s most important outpost for the Sangiovese grape. Tuscan wine ranges in style from fruity and simple to complex and age-worthy, Sangiovese makes up a significant percentage of plantings here, with the white Trebbiano Toscano coming in second.
Within Tuscany, many esteemed wines have their own respective sub-zones, including Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. The climate is Mediterranean and the topography consists mostly of picturesque rolling hills, scattered with vineyards.
Sangiovese at its simplest produces straightforward pizza-friendly Tuscan wines with bright and juicy red fruit, but at its best it shows remarkable complexity and ageability. Top-quality Sangiovese-based wines can be expressive of a range of characteristics such as sour cherry, balsamic, dried herbs, leather, fresh earth, dried flowers, anise and tobacco. Brunello, an exceptionally bold Tuscan wine, expresses well the particularities of vintage variations and is thus popular among collectors. Chianti is associated with tangy and food-friendly dry wines at various price points. A more recent phenomenon as of the 1970s is the “Super Tuscan”—a red wine made from international grape varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Syrah, with or without Sangiovese. These are common in Tuscany’s coastal regions like Bolgheri, Val di Cornia, Carmignano and the island of Elba.