Winemaker Notes
Vecchie Viti easily brings out the best qualities in the classic Tuscan ribollita soup, pappardelle in wild boar sauce, and meat-filled cannelloni; it is outstanding with baked meats and roasts.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2013 Chianti Rufina Riserva Nipozzano Vecchie Viti is elegant and sophisticated with mild and somewhat tame intensity all the while. This wine hits all the right sweet spots as a food-friendly Tuscan red that would taste great next to pasta with wild boar ragù. I enjoyed the linearity, honesty and the straightforward nature of this wine.
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Tasting Panel
Earthy nose; flavorful and juicy with tangy acidity and bright berry flavors. Complex with excellent balance and a lengthy finish.
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Wine Enthusiast
Hailing from the oldest vines on the Castello Nipozzano estate, this offers enticing aromas of fragrant violet, iris, perfumed berry, aromatic herb and baking spice. Made with Sangiovese and small percentages of Malvasia Nera, Colorino and Canaiolo, the silky, linear palate offers wild cherry, crushed raspberry, clove and a hint of licorice framed in smooth tannins and fresh acidity.
Editors' Choice -
Wine Spectator
Black currant, cherry, herb and mineral aromas and flavors are the hallmarks of this vibrant, elegant red. Firm, balanced and long, showing consistency from beginning to end. Drink now through 2025.
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.