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Chianti Classico, ItalyBack in the early 1700's, the original region known simply as Chianti centred around the towns of Radda, Greve, Gaiole and Castellina, in central Italy - but these days Chianti has grown considerably and now consists of several subzones:
Nestled in the Tuscan hills between Florence and Siena is the most reknowned, largest subzone, and probably the heart of the region - Chianti Classico. Vineyards here are located at varying altitudes, ranging from around 250m to over 500m above sea level. It's quite a challenge at this level to ripen red grapes to appropriate sugar and tannin levels. That's not the only problem they face either - downy mildew can be a killer for tight Sangiovese bunches when it rains during vintage. It's surprising to find that Chianti Classico is not one huge expanse of vines rolling over the hilly landscape. In fact, 75% of the environment is still woods, and you'll come across as many olive groves as vineyards. The region resonates peasant village life from bygone eras. Tiny Castellos sit atop hills here - each with a maze of narrow streets lined with picture-book Tuscan houses. Yes, they really do exist - complete with terracotta pots of red flowers, tiny central squares dominated by an ornate church, and even the odd cat sleeping on the window ledge. Today there are over 600 wineries in Chianti Classico. And one of the vineyards, west of Figline Valdarno, belongs to Sting, ... so the locals say ... So, what exactly IS Chianti?It's important that you know that not every Chianti is a Chianti Classico. Chianti as a style of wine can be, and is, made in other regions of Tuscany, in fact most of central Italy makes it, from all kinds of grapes. However a Chianti Classico must come from the Chianti Classico region, is made from 75 to 100% Sangiovese grapes, and bears the pink neck tag as proof of its origin. The original formula is attributed to Baron Ricasole- once Italy's Prime Minister - in the 1870's. He determined two different styles. The first was a drink-early style, which originally included white grapes the likes of Malvasia and Trebbiano to provide more up-front fruit for this style. The other was a high quality, well structured wine that could age for decades. Over time the proportion of white grapes used in the cheaper quality wine started getting out of hand. Not only that, but red wines imported from other Italian wine regions began creeping into the mix. Chianti became insipid, unstable and boring. The DOC, when setting up the Chianti region in the 1960's, decided to limit the use of white grapes in Chianti to between 10 and 30%. This wasn't enough for serious Chianti producers near Florence [notably the Antinori family], who by the mid 1970's began to produce their own style of Chianti - using primarily Sangiovese and a little Cabernet Sauvignon. This new wine was much more refined, had better aging capacity, and exhibited higher quality character than any of the other Tuscans. However, as they hadn't stuck to the DOC rules, they had to sell their wine as a Vino da Tavola [table wine]! Thus Chianti Classico Reserva was born - a style which now carries the DOCG qualification, and is made from low-yeilding Sangiovese, aged in oak and able to be cellared around ten years plus. The Black CockThere's a legend they tell you in these parts regarding the origin of the symbol of the Chianti Classico Consorzio [a production and marketing consortium of wine producers from the Chianti Classico region]. It is believed that the word Chianti comes from the Latin word meaning 'to fight'. The symbol of the Chianti Classico Consorzio is the black cock. Legend has it that settlement of a long-term territorial dispute between Florence and Siena was sought so that the villagers between these cities could live in peace. Each city decided that it would send out a rider on a horse at dawn on a particular day, and the place where the horses met along the road would determine the boundary of each city's territory. Siena sent officials to Florence to monitor the race, Florence sent their officials to Siena. Only problem was - how to determine the horses left at exactly the same time? There were no phones, internet ... They came up with the idea that the crow of the cock [rooster] in the morning would sound the beginning of the race. Siena chose a fat, healthy white rooster. In the days before the race, this rooster experienced celebrity status. He was pampered and fed constantly. Florence chose a spindly black rooster. They starved it for three days. Needless to say, by the morning of the race, the black rooster was edgy and up crowing well before sunrise. Siena's fat white rooster was still asleep ... To this day, the black cock is the symbol of Chianti, and Florence is the capital of the region! Cellar Door in Chianti Classico - Le CantineChianti Classico's vineyards, wineries and cellar doors are spread over a wide region, and if you're visiting on a budgetted amount of time or money, it's hard to see more than a few of them. Chianti can range from an inexpensive, drink-early style, to serious 'Super-Tuscans' [incidentally, the locals tell you they didn't come up with this name - it's the idea of a US journalist which just stuck], and if you want to experience a cross-section of these wines, it can be a long search. Fortunately there's a solution. In the heart of Chianti Classico is a village called Greve-in-Chianti - where you'll find 'Le Cantine di Greve in Chianti'. If ever there was a mecca for Chianti lovers, this would have to be it. Le Cantine is owned by the local butcher, Falorni, who stills carves up cuts in the centre square. The Falorni family opened La Cantine in 2000 in a 1890's building, which has a fantastic history in itself. From 1898 to 1902, the cellar was constructed, to coincide with the railway, by the Leproni Bocconi family. In 1919, it was bought by Vittorio Emmanuel II, along with a Count's title and an estate, for his son to Bella Rosina. In the early 1940's it was sold once again to the Gancia brothers from Milan, who continued to use it to ship out Chianti, until the 1960's, when it came into the hands of an Italo-American family, the Paterno's. During the time the Paterno's owned the cellar, 95% of the Chianti passing through it was destined for the US. In 1979 the cellar closed ... and so did the railway. It lay in waste for the net 20 years, until the Falorni family bought and transformed it into Le Cantine. Now serving as a museum and wine cellar, you can taste every Tuscan wine in the one place, as well as a small section from outside the region, and thanks to Manager Marco Baldini's relationship with local growers, Le Cantine is able to source wines not always available elsewhere. Current vintages are on hand, and vertical tastings can be arranged if you want. But the real drawcard of this place is the Enoround. Without getting too technical, the Enoround [for which they proudly own the patent] is like a carousel, where bottles of sumptuous Chianti are placed in a distribution set-up that replaces air-space in the opened bottles with nitrogen. The opened bottles can thus stay alive for around 20 days. What this effectively means is that they can open serious Chianti for you to taste, without you having to fork out for the whole bottle! All you do is buy a debit card, which you place into a slot on the Enoround, select the wine you want to try and place your glass under the spout! Incidentally, the only other place in the world you can try this is in New Zealand. To learn more about the Enoround, and this innovative technology, visit the Enomatic website here. Marco's pride and joy is a specially stocked Enoround "L'isola dei Tesori" [Treasure Island], which he sets up only in September each year, and offers some pretty impressive wines that you may only get to try once in a lifetime - this year's included the likes of: Brunello di Montalcino 'Soldera' 1999 [€145/bottle] - a medium-bodied, traditional 100% Sangiovese designed to age around 50 years; or Bolgheri 'Sassicaia' 2003, which you won't find on the shelf in Le Cantine ... Marco keeps it hidden in his office! This 85% Cabernet Sauvignon, 15% Cabernet Franc, aged in french oak, rolls fresh cassis, capsicum and herbaceousness around your pallet for the meagre sum of €110 per bottle. [Author's note: The finish on this wine is astounding - it just keeps going and going and going ... morphing into different flavours faster than I could write them down!] And, of course, a Chianti Classico from the legendary father of Chianti we mentioned above, Castello di Brolio 1997 [Barone Ricasole]. 100% Sangiovese, with surprisingly fresh fruit up front, a long, spicey finish, all rounded off with fine, drying tannins. As if the wines themselves are not drawcard enough, at Le Cantine you'll find a myriad of ancient books on wine and olive oil production, over 2,000 styles of bottle openers, winery and vineyard equipment from eras passed ... you name it, it's there! In the next couple of years, another museum - Palazzo di Vini - is on the cards for the main square of Greve-in-Chianti. This will be a government enterprise, whereas Le Cantine is a private collection. It appears Greve is positioning itself as a serious wine tourism destination, and that's great to hear for the wine enthusiast. There's a distinct lack of wine tourism infrastructure in many parts of Europe, and if Greve does it right, it can expect many visitors! If you go nowhere else in Chianti, make sure you visit this sleepy little town with a dynamo of a cellar door opportunity! Author's travel tips:There's a massive quality difference between the Chianti's at different price points - even between €5 and €10 - the former only being barely drinkable, and the latter falling over quickly on the palate after a rush of fruit. My advice - pay a little more if you're really serious about your Chianti. If you're backpacking around, do what I did and get a bunch of people at the hostel to pitch in for a decent bottle. And don't forget to give the Vin Santo a go. Vin Santo is a sweet white wine made by pressing dried grapes to increase sugar levels. It's usually accompanied with biscuits for dunking. Getting to Greve... is really easy. Take a SITA bus from Florence - right across the road from Santa Maria Nouvella Stazione (Florence's main station). It will cost you €2.90 each way [@ Oct 2006], and you'll be dropped in the centre of Greve within an hour. When you get on the bus, make sure you put your ticket through the validating machine just behind the driver. When you get to Greve, it seems you are dropped in the middle of nowhere, but just follow your feet to the centre square - or ask someone where Le Cantine is. More Le Cantine info:Debit cards for tastings at Le Cantine, at time of writing, range from €10 to €25, but you can always recharge it if you run out! All staff at Le Cantine are Sommelliers, and speak English. Marco himself also speaks Spanish and French, and is in the store most of the time - so seek him out for some personal attention! Individual tastings cost anywhere from 40c to €9, and at any one time there are around 140 wines on tasting. Whilst in Greve, head off uphill a couple of kilometres [bit steep in some spots, but a quick break will keep you going] and you'll find tiny Castello Montefiorale. Meander around the narrow streets and feel stress draining out through your feet. If you're unsure how to get there, ask Marco! Cellar Door Visiting:If you want to do a bus tour within Chianti Classico, in my experience you're better off doing it from Siena. Florence info centres and brochures quote around €60-70 for a tour, which offers pretty much the same service as the €25 tour I took from Siena. Besides, you can spend time in Siena whilst you're at it. This tiny walled city gets my vote as the most beautiful city in Italy. Please also note that Le Cantine in no way paid CD2D to write about them ... okay, so they let me taste the wines gratis. Grazie, Marco! 2006 ChiantiSo what will the 2006 vintage be like? During my visit, it hailed once - magnificent sight in Piazza Del Campo in Siena - and rained a couple of times for short periods. Combine that with some seriously muggy heat between the showers, and there could be fungus issues. Last Updated: |
     
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