Over the next few weeks, I will dedicate this column to sangiovese as I am in Tuscany after all, which is the home of the great wine. Sangiovese really is king in these parts.
I should mention however that sangiovese is known by many other names. This is partly due to the many different clones of the variety, but also due to the fact that each region and sub-region tends to know it by a different name. Its synonyms include Morellino (di Scansano), Brunello (di Montalcino), Montepulciano (Vino Nobile di…), Tignolo and Prugnolo. Even Sagrantino di Montefalco from neighbouring Umbria, is largely Sangiovese.
Sangiovese can be found on its own or blended with other varieties, both within and outside of the DOC system. Just because a wine is made out of sangiovese and comes from within a specific region (Chianti Classico, for example), it does not mean it will qualify to be sold as a DOC wine. It has to fulfil all the requirements of the DOC system to do so. There will be more about that in a subsequent article on Chianti Classico.
In Chianti, its traditional bedfellows are Canaiolo and Ciliegolo. It is Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc and Merlot in Carmignano (about which I will dedicate a whole other article to) and in the so-called Super Tuscans.
Before I arrived in Italy, I viewed sangiovese as a variety characterized by being of a lighter style. I had been aware that extraction could be difficult, and that its core manifestation (in, say, Chianti Classico) was of cherry fruit and medium tannins, producing a fairly linear and uncomplicated wine. Indeed, this is a particularly delicious incarnation, and accompanies many foods, climes and moods!
But I have come to realize that, with different clonally selection, viticulture, vinification techniques (especially in relation to extraction – time and temperature of fermentation, extended maceration and barrel fermentation) and, of course, terroir, sangiovese has myriad expressions. Even two Chianti Classici will never be identical.
I will include some tasting notes below of a selection of wines, tasted at various tastings, which will not fall into categories of subsequent articles.
Salvioni – Brunello di Montalcino – DOCG – 2001 (17.5). This was a wonderful wine, and even given its age, was a touch closed. It had core fruit flavours of dark fruits, with plum coming to the fore, in a complex, savoury frame. Would have continued to improve for 5 years +.
Fontodi – Flaccianello della Pieve – IGT 1994 (18). This is the top wine from the Fontodi stable, which also produces a fantastic Chianti Classico (more in the article on that sub region). 100% Sangiovese from their best sites, the age of the wine was evident on tasting, but it retained fruit and tannins, with a silky mouth feel.
Caprai – Sagrantino di Montefalco – DOCG – 1995 (17.5). A very, if not the most, important Sagrantino, the Caprai name was synonymous with the revival of Umbria’s vinous reputation. Again age did not extinguish fruit expression, with a mint and spiciness adding to its attractiveness.
Percarlo (San Giusto a Rentenanno) – IGT – 1998 (18). Located in the heart of Chianti Classico, this is another 100% Sangiovese wine labeled as an IGT. I was impressed with the prune fruit flavours and, when the wine opened fully, how they mingled with spicy flavours consisting of cinnamon and cloves in particular.
Asinone – – DOCG – 1999 (18.5). The Poliziano vineyards are located mainly in Vino Nobile di Montepulciano selezione’ (Poliziano)Montepulciano, and the Asinone is a DOCG Vino Nobile di Montepulciano (there is a lesser wine in the range which is also a DOCG Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, but it is not labelled ‘selezione’). Wow! A wonderfully complex wine, with fruit, spice and oak now in perfect balance to give a silky mouth feel.
The above provides just a hint of the wonderful sangiovese discoveries I have been making. I must acknowledge my new friends in the tasting group I have joined. They are as knowledgeable, generous, down to earth and hospitable as any of the groups I have belonged to in the past. They are also the source of many of the wines listed above.
Ciao,
Brendan Jansen