Winemaker Notes
Deep ruby red with purple nuances. Fruit-forward. aromas of blackberry, blueberry, raspberry and currant. A well balanced, refined and harmonic palate with long-lasting aromatic profile. A pure expression of elegance.
Blend: 95% Sangiovese, 5% Merlot
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Very subtle aromas of dark berries, licorice and violets. Really floral and bright. Medium-bodied with very fine tannins that integrate beautifully into the wine. Such a lovely and sophisticated mouth-feel to this. Drinkable already, but better in two or three years.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This is a new wine with the inaugural 2018 vintage introduced last year. The Castello di Ama 2019 Chianti Classico Riserva Montebuoni draws its fruit from a vineyard site that sits parallel to Vigneto Bellavista about one kilometer over and enjoys similar exposures. The estate felt that it needed to fill a gap in the portfolio between the entry-level wines and the top-shelf Gran Selezioni. That's where the Riserva Montebuoni comes in. This 15-hectare site was purchased by Marco Pallanti in 1997, and a lot of work went into moving earth and preparing the poor, clay-based terrain for planting. These results show beautifully concentrated fruit over a medium to full-bodied approach with lingering smoke, blackberry and sweet tobacco.
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Wine & Spirits
Flavors of dark cherry and black raspberry provide a pleasantly tart edge to this wine’s rich texture and warm spice notes. Pinpoint acidity and saline tones wash through the finish as the wine gains energy with exposure to air.
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Decanter
The second vintage of this single-vineyard Riserva, Montebuoni is sourced from vines at least 20 years old. It provides a logical progression from Ama’s annata, made from younger vines. As with the annata, ageing is in second-use French oak barriques. A sweet herbal mix of fennel and tarragon mingles with strawberry and rhubarb. Hints of vanilla permeate throughout. Smooth and polished, it glides across the palate. Lightly powdered tannins are quite delicate and well-integrated. Mouthwatering and cheerful, with a cranberry tang.
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Wine Spectator
Rich, boasting cherry, plum, earth, leather and sanguine notes. Firm, yet the fruit holds its own through the lively, persistent finish. Fine balance and energy overall. Sangiovese and Merlot.
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.