Winemaker Notes
Bucerchiale is Selvapiana's flagship wine, a Riserva-level Chianti Rùfina crafted from the grapes of the estate's best vineyard, Bucerchiale. Francesco Giuntini, working with young winemaker Franco Bernabei on his second vintage at Selvapiana, created this special wine to be a long-aging benchmark of the best of Rùfina's and Selvapiana's Sangiovese. The wine is not a blend, as is normal with Chianti, but rather is pure Sangiovese to show that variety without any adornment by other blending components. First produced in 1979, Bucerchiale is made in only the best vintages, seven or eight times per decade.
Professional Ratings
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James Suckling
The pure sangiovese character is so impressive and enticing; this frames bark, dried rosemary, rose petals, cedar, burnt orange peel, truffles and earth. The tannins are so firm and serious, while the forthright acidity is the perfect combination. Layers of taut but plush red fruit and continual, savory and umami undertones. Superb. Drink from 2024.
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Wine Enthusiast
Loaded with personality, this opens with aromas of forest floor, new leather, camphor and ripe black-skinned fruit. The palate boasts an earthy elegance reminiscent of top Burgundies, showcasing ripe black cherry, crushed raspberry, truffle, star anise and a hint of salted game. Firm, fine-grained tannins provide support while fresh acidity keeps it balanced. Drink 2022– 2036.
Editors' Choice -
Wine Spectator
Dark and brooding, this red features ripe black cherry, blackberry, wild herb, earth and iron flavors. Gains in richness, density and ripeness what it loses in freshness, though shows fine balance and length. Drink now through 2028.
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.
Famous for its food-friendly, approachable red wines and their storied history, Chianti is perhaps the best-known wine region of Italy. This appellation within Tuscany has it all: sweeping views of rolling hills, endless vineyards, the warm Mediterranean sun, hearty cuisine and a rich artistic heritage. Chianti includes seven subzones: Chianti Colli Fiorentini, Rufina, Montalbano, Colli Senesi, Colline Pisane, Colli Aretini and Montespertoli, with area beyond whose wines can be labeled simply as Chianti.
However the best quality comes from Chianti Classico, in the heart of the Chianti zone, which is no longer a subzone of the region at all but has been recognized on its own since 1996. The Classico region today is delimited by the confines of the original Chianti zone protected since the 1700s.
Chianti wines are made primarily of Sangiovese, with other varieties comprising up to 25-30% of the blend. Generally, local varieties are used, including Canaiolo, Colorino and Mammolo, but international varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah are allowed as long as they are grown within the same zone.
Basic, value-driven Chianti wine is simple and fruit-forward and makes a great companion to any casual dinner. At its apex, Chianti is full bodied but with good acidity, firm tannins, and notes of tart red fruit, dried herbs, fennel, balsamic and tobacco. Chianti Riserva, typically the top bottling of a producer, can benefit handsomely from a decade or two of cellaring.