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2016 Chianti Classico Riserva
Villa Di GeggianoBecause of the DOCG’s strict aging requirements, Brunello di Montalcino is typically the Tuscan red that arrives on our shores several years after the vintage has come and gone. By contrast, we usually don’t have to wait as long for Chianti Classico to arrive. Chianti Classico must age for at least seven months before release, compared to Chianti Classico Riserva’s two years and Brunello di Montalcino’s five. Villa di Geggiano’s Chianti Classico Riserva bottling is always the exception to the rule due to its slow, painstaking, cellar-aging process underneath the picturesque villa just north of Siena. This is why we are just now enjoying Geggiano’s 2016 Riserva. Combine the selection of the domaine’s best grapes, the extended life in oak tonneaux, barriques, and botti, and the excellent 2015 vintage, and you have a masterful Chianti Classico Riserva. Concentrated, youthful, and soulful, this Sangiovese is enchanting now, but it has a long life full of gorgeous evolution ahead. Although the wine is complex, evoking black cherries, tobacco, and bosco, it begs for a meal as simple as a steak cooked over fire.
—Tom Wolf
Wine Type: | red |
Vintage: | 2016 |
Bottle Size: | 750mL |
Blend: | 97% Sangiovese 3% Cabernet Sauvignon |
Appellation: | Chianti Classico Riserva |
Country: | Italy |
Region: | Tuscany |
Producer: | Villa di Geggiano |
Winemaker: | Andrea & Alessandro Boscu Bianchi Bandinelli |
Vineyard: | 30 years, 7 ha total |
Soil: | Clay, Silt, Sand, Limestone |
Aging: | Ages 20 months in French oak tonneaux (500-L, 90%) and barriques (225-L, 10%) (15% new); 10 months in 12-hl and 20-hl French oak botti |
Farming: | Organic (certified) |
Alcohol: | 14.5% |
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About The Producer
Villa di Geggiano
About The Region
Tuscany
Perhaps no region is tied to Italy’s reputation as a producer of fine wine as much as Tuscany. Since Etruscan times, viticulture has played a prominent role in this idyllic land of rolling hills, and the Tuscan winemaking tradition remains as strong as ever today. With a favorable Mediterranean climate, an undulating topography offering countless altitudes and expositions, and a wealth of poor, well-draining soils, conditions are ideal for crafting high-quality wines. Add to that the rich gastronomical tradition—Tuscany is home to some of the country’s finest game, pastas, salumi, and cheeses—and you have the blueprint for a world-class wine region.
This is Sangiovese territory; in fact, it is arguably the only place in the world where Sangiovese reaches a truly regal expression. In spite of a rocky history with fluctuations in quality, traditionally produced Chianti has reclaimed its status as one of the country’s most reliable, food-friendly reds, while the rapid rise of Brunello di Montalcino shows the grape’s potential for grandiose, opulent reds allying power and finesse. Traditionally-minded growers have stuck to using only indigenous grape varieties and employing techniques like aging in massive wooden casks known as botti, creating wines of terroir that shine at the Tuscan table.
Tuscan wines have had a place in our portfolio since Kermit’s first visit in 1977. While the names of the estates have changed, the spirit of those first unfiltered Chiantis he imported live on through our current selections.
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Vintage Chart Mentality
Vintage Chart Mentality
Trust the great winemakers, trust the great vineyards. Your wine merchant might even be trustworthy. In the long run, that vintage strip may be the least important guide to quality on your bottle of wine.—Kermit Lynch