Winemaker Notes
Suave and balanced; tart cherries, light pepper, baking spices. A traditional, flavorful and outstanding blend of Sangiovese, Canaiolo and Colorino. One of the finest organically raised Chianti Classicos in the region, vintage after vintage.
Professional Ratings
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Jeb Dunnuck
Pouring a deep magenta hue, the 2022 Chianti Classico is inviting and ripe with aromas of black raspberries, cherries, crushed violets, and mossy earth. The palate is polished and pure, with ripe tannins, crunchy, refreshing acidity, and a stony texture. It’s a lovely Chianti Classico that will be fantastic.
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James Suckling
This juicy, well-balanced Chianti Classico delivers fresh, vibrant red berry and cherry fruit with touches of white pepper and hibiscus. Quite firm and juicy, with nicely chewy tannins and a dainty, succulent finish. Effortlessly drinkable, but will also hold well for the next few years.
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Vinous
The 2022 Chianti Classico is fabulous—one of the best of the year. A burst of dark red/purplish fruit, lavender, spice, rose petal and mint all race across the palate. Deep, layered and wonderfully sexy, the 2022 is utterly irresistible. It’s a superb effort from proprietor Marco Ricasoli Firidolfi.
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Wine Spectator
A rich, dense style, displaying cherry, raspberry and blackberry flavors, with a hint of black pepper, while assertive tannins and lively acidity lend support. This is balanced, if a tad extracted, with fine length. Sangiovese, Canaiolo and Colorino. Drink now through 2032.
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.