Winemaker Notes
We only produce this Chianti Classico Gran Selezione in outstanding vintages. When we do make Riserva Ducale Oro, we start by harvesting the grapes by hand, mostly from our Gretole estate in the Chianti Classico appellation. The vineyard lots are vinified individually to preserve their specificity to the land. We age the wine in oak, stainless steel and concrete vats for 36 months, twelve months longer than required by Italian law. The wine then spends additional months in bottle before release.
Ruby red with garnet hues. The wine expresses a distinctive Tuscan bouquet of violet, cherry, and plum, with aromas of chocolate and spice. Intense aromas of violet, blackberry, cherry, and ripe plum with intriguing notes of cinnamon and clove. Classic elegance and structure in which the fruit, tannins, and spices form a tightly woven balance, with a lingering finish of chocolate and coffee.
Riserva Ducale Oro pairs exquisitely with traditional Italian dishes such as pasta Bolognese, wild boar ragu, and eggplant Parmesan. It's also wonderful with classic American dishes such as grilled ribeye and roasted vegetables.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
Complex and subtle aromas of wet earth, mushrooms, cherries and walnuts follow through to a full-bodied yet compressed and tensioned palate. Shows length and a savory finish. Really delicious now, but will improve with age. Drink or hold.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2015 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Riserva Ducale Oro shows some signs of the summer heat with scorched earth, black olive and rosemary essence. The intensity of the primary fruit fades slightly to the back now that we are four years after the harvest. This mid-weight wine is slightly more textured in terms of tannins and mouthfeel. Pair it with a porcini ravioli and a sausage ragù. The blend is 85% Sangiovese, 10% Merlot and 5% Colorino.
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.