Winemaker Notes
Concentration and details in a virtuous alliance. The bouquet displays great breed: spicy and balmy tones frame ripe fruit, accompanied by echoes of violets and mineral shades. On the palate it is vigorous, vibrant and powerful, with a broad and intriguingly tangy aftertaste.
Professional Ratings
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Wine Spectator
Silky and aromatic, this version features black currant, raspberry, violet and graphite flavors, allied to an elegant frame. The tannins are firm, yet well-proportioned, with freshness and drive on the lingering finish. Best from 2023 through 2040.
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James Suckling
A tangy, fruity red with plum and chocolate aromas and flavors. Medium-to full-bodied with creamy tannins and a fresh finish. Slightly bitter finish, adding complexity.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
With a bouquet that shows layers of blackberry, dried cherry, sweet spice and toasted clove, the Lamole di Lamole 2016 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Vigneto di Campolungo is a modern, thickly extracted and heavier style of Chianti Classico with more fruit weight and a bigger oak presence. I'd say that these characteristics move the wine toward the more international side of the Chianti Classico style spectrum, and the elegance and age-worthiness of the wine are intact.
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.