Winemaker Notes
A classically style Chianti Classico, the wine has a well knit tannic structure surrounding a palate of mixed berries and potting soil. A gentle savory character adds complexity and invites a range of pairing options.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Fragrant and savory, with aromas of cherries, pomegranates, rose petals and touches of pepper and spices. The palate is medium-bodied and lively with polished tannins, offering purity and clarity of fruit with a subtle earthy note in the finish. From organically grown grapes. Drink or hold.
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Vinous
The 2022 Chianti Classico is the only red wine from Le Cinciole in a challenging vintage marked by devastating hail in August. Dark cherry, plum, leather, incense, menthol and mocha infuse the 2022 with striking textural depth and resonance. There's real substance here, not to mention tons of character.
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.