Winemaker Notes
With a persistent, pleasant and versatile structure in the drink. Great return and in its enveloping simplicity like a hug. Balanced and sapid. Berries and spices.
Professional Ratings
-
James Suckling
A soft and silky red with plum and chocolate character. Hints of walnuts. Medium to full body, polished tannins and a clean finish. Best wine from here in a long time. Drink now.
-
Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Chianti Classico Fontalpino is a delightful wine to drink. It shows ripe primary fruit and sweet back notes that add to the textural richness and the decisive but relatively understated power of the wine. Dark cherry, blackberry, spice and cured leather are part of the aromatic ensemble. The mouthfeel is fresh, soft and nicely constructed with pretty layers of medium extraction and firmness.
Rating: 90+ -
Wine Spectator
A meaty, dense and tannic version, with ample cherry, leather, iron and tobacco notes at the core. A beam of lively acidity drives the finish, which leans to the underbrush side. Best from 2019 through 2030. 3,300 cases made.
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.