Winemaker Notes
Bright ruby-red color. The guiding aromas are quite fruity, with a distinctive sour cherry fragrance. Red and black berries are accompanied by floral notes such as sweet violet and a subtle, delicate spice. Finally, the profound elegance is highlighted by a splendid freshness.
Ideal with meat ragu and all red meats. The wine is especially well-suited with aged cheeses.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
A full-bodied red with plum and walnut aromas and flavors. Some meat and spice, too. Firm and silky. Flavorful. Real Chianti Classico
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Wine Enthusiast
Graphite, leather, blue flower and wild berry aromas waft out of the glass. Elegant and delicious, the fresh, supple palate doles out ripe black plum, cassis, mint and licorice alongside fine-grained tannins.
Editors' Choice -
Wine Spectator
From the celebrated Frescobaldi family, the Tenuta Perano 2019 Chianti Classico is Sangiovese mixed with other complementary varieties. This easy-drinking wine offers tart cherry, earth, tar and crushed stone. This mid-weight Tuscan red would pair with a plate of ricotta-filled ravioli or another hearty pasta dish.
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.