Chianti

Question 1

Location…..

Answer 1

Between Siena and Florence

Question 2

Made up of…..

Answer 2

Mix of Sangiovese and Canaiolo

Question 3

How was Chianti first described in 14th century?

Answer 3

As a white wine called “Vino Vermiglio” or simply Florence. Not very popular.

Question 4

When did the Medicis place boundaries in place?

Answer 4

1716

Question 5

Chianti

Answer 5

• Limited area writhin Florence and Siena.
• 6000 hectares of v/ yards used in Chianti Classico for 250- 270,000hl
• Varieties: Sangiovese (must be 80%), other varieties such as Cabernet, Merlot and Canaiolo (can be up to 20%)

Question 6

What are the three categories of wine in Chianti?

Answer 6

Vintage, Riserva, Gran Selezione

Question 7

Vintage- Chianti

Answer 7

Wine can be sold from October 1st of the year following the harvest. Generally it is a wine with notes of violet and cherry and with short permanence in wood, nice and inviting, vibrant tannins sometimes slightly acidic such as Sangiovese can be.

Question 8

Riserva- Chianti

Answer 8

It can be sold from January 1st two years and 3 months after the harvest. Compared to the “vintage”, it is more complex, certainly more evolved but still fresh and vibrant. Certainly it has a greater depth of flavour, quite harmonic in the tannic notes with a touch of vanilla also due to wood aging (barrel and/ or casks). Over time we are increasingly returning to larger wooden containers (in our case with the classic barriques we use 3hl barrels but also casks of 50hl) using “good” wood meaning not too old where it seems that the wine can age while keeping most of its original characteristics.

Question 9

Gran Selezione- Chianti

Answer 9

Introduced two years ago. It requires that the wine must be produced entirely by the Company. The entire production cycle must take place inside the winery, from the production of grapes to the bottling. The minimum aging period is 3 years from the harvest and the wine can be sold from September 1st, the third after the harvest (2015 in September 2018). Chianti Classico remains a restricted area but within which insist areas capable to give to the final product characteristics sometimes quite different.

Question 10

The highest areas above sea level of Chianti….

Answer 10

Have a more continental climate with good temperature excursions that give more “nervous” wines, dominated by notes of violets and red fruits; the mouth is more vibrant, in some ways slightly acidic but more mineral and savoury. In the lower areas, also generally clay- rich, with less rocky soils, the wines are perhaps softer with more mature notes, in some ways “sweeter” and with darker fruits and less “vibration”. There are also areas closer to the sea that benefit of a warmer climate and in some ways in a “Brunello” style.

Question 11

Canaiolo

Answer 11

• Grown all over Central Italy and is an ingredient in Chianti
• Was more important in Chianti than Sangiovese in the 18th Century
• Hard to graft after Phylloxera and suffered from poor colonial Selection
• Good quality examples still exist in some spots near Chianti Classio mainly at Castello Di Brolio and Castello Di Cacchiano in Gaiole in Chianti in Barbarino Val d’Elsa, and in Vino Nobile Di Montepulciano
• Trying to resurrect the variety by using better colonial selection and mass selection, in Tuscany
• Is also grown in limited extent in Lazio, Sardinia and the Marche
• Lighter bodied Canaiolo Blanco is also grown in Umbria, where in Orvieto it is known as Drupeggio, but it is declining in popularity.