Winemaker Notes
Its intense ruby red color gives it a bold and elegant character. Red berries and notes of ripe citrus fruit give way to a delicately fruity nose, followed by elegant notes of violet. This is all completed with a slight spiciness. The palate expresses itself with an intriguing, harmonious complexity. Nipozzano 2016 is dense and persistent.
Pairs with grilled red meat, roast lamb, and semi-matured pecorino cheese.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Fresh and linear with aromas and flavors of black cherries and hints of hazelnuts and walnuts. Medium body, light tannins giving a lightly dusty texture and a crisp and bright, fresh finish.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
This is one of the most value-conscious and versatile red wines to come from Tuscany, and these are two attributes that are consistently awarded to this wine year after year. The Frescobaldi 2016 Chianti Rúfina Riserva Nipozzano offers a repeat performance and indeed adds a little more bang for your buck, thanks to the general excellence of this vintage. Sangiovese-based wines from 2016 are linked by a sense of linearity and focus. Red cherry and cassis play a leading role with grilled herb, potting soil and light shadings of iron ore. This is a mid-weight expression with plenty of extra texture, softness and freshness on the close.
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.
Famous for its food-friendly, approachable red wines and their storied history, Chianti is perhaps the best-known wine region of Italy. This appellation within Tuscany has it all: sweeping views of rolling hills, endless vineyards, the warm Mediterranean sun, hearty cuisine and a rich artistic heritage. Chianti includes seven subzones: Chianti Colli Fiorentini, Rufina, Montalbano, Colli Senesi, Colline Pisane, Colli Aretini and Montespertoli, with area beyond whose wines can be labeled simply as Chianti.
However the best quality comes from Chianti Classico, in the heart of the Chianti zone, which is no longer a subzone of the region at all but has been recognized on its own since 1996. The Classico region today is delimited by the confines of the original Chianti zone protected since the 1700s.
Chianti wines are made primarily of Sangiovese, with other varieties comprising up to 25-30% of the blend. Generally, local varieties are used, including Canaiolo, Colorino and Mammolo, but international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah are allowed as long as they are grown within the same zone.
Basic, value-driven Chianti wine is simple and fruit-forward and makes a great companion to any casual dinner. At its apex, Chianti is full bodied but with good acidity, firm tannins, and notes of tart red fruit, dried herbs, fennel, balsamic and tobacco. Chianti Riserva, typically the top bottling of a producer, can benefit handsomely from a decade or two of cellaring.