Castello di Querceto Il Picchio Chianti Classico Gran Selezione 2017
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Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert - Decanter
Product Details
Your Rating
Somm Note
Winemaker Notes
Intense ruby red, floral and chocolate aromas with elegant herbal notes. Remarkable body with lots of character and a long and persistent finish.
Pairs well with grilled meats, white truffles, stews and aged cheese.
Blend: 95% Sangiovese, 5% Colorino
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Extremely pretty aromas of crushed berries such as blackberries and brambleberries. Some flowers, too. Medium to full body, creamy and lightly chewy tannins and a flavorful finish.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The Castello di Querceto 2017 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Il Picchio is a rich and darkly concentrated wine that shows beautiful width and depth of aromas. There's a lot going on in the glass, thanks to the bouquet that is colored by dark cherry, dark currant, dried blackberry, spice, cured tobacco and crushed stone. The warm vintage brings extra ripeness and fruit weight that shows nicely against the cool, medium-high elevations of the Castello di Querceto vineyards in beautiful Greve in Chianti.
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Decanter
Bottled separately as a single vineyard wine since 1988, Il Picchio is surrounded by a forest of oak and chestnut trees. The soil is poor but full of multicoloured schist containing minerals like iron, magnesium and manganese. Upfront cedar and smoke fuse with cherry and plum compote. The full, weighty package is lifted by brightening acidity but ultimately carried by firm, solid tannins. Finishes with a slight arid, mouth-drying sensation.
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Robert
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Suckling
James -
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Robert
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Suckling
James -
Parker
Robert - Decanter
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.