2017 Fontodi Chianti Classico

Located in the heart of the Chianti Classico region, Tenuta Fontodi is owned and operated by the Manetti family. The 320-acre estate includes about 175 acres of certified organic vineyards. The estate produces 300,000 bottles of wine a year, and the signature win is the Flaccianello della Pieve, a 100% Sangiovese. The Flaccianello was first produced by Giovanni Manetti in 1981 as a single-vineyard bottling. But starting in 2001 Manetti has used the estate’s best fruit, regardless of which vineyard it came from, for the wine. Robert M. Parker Jr. has frequently rated the Flaccianello della Pieve with high scores, though he has also written that collectors “should not ignore the estate’s other wines, which are equally outstanding.”

Chianti is Tuscany’s most famous and historic wine district, and the Chianti Classico DOCG is the most prestigious Chianti appellation. Fittingly, it is located in the heart of the larger Chianti DOCG. Chianti’s wines were so esteemed during the Renaissance that the Medici princes of Florence designated several villages within the Chianti region as discrete production zones, setting up the first appellations in Italy. By the 20th century Chianti was Italy’s primary wine export. But the pizza parlor Chiantis sent to foreign markets were inexpensive, unremarkable reds presented in round-bottomed, straw-covered bottles. To upgrade Chianti wines and the region’s image, the Chianti Classico DOC was created in 1967, then upgraded to DOCG status in 1984, with additional modifications made in 1996. In the last 20 years a consortium of Chianti Classico producers have researched new Sangiovese clones, replanted vineyards, updated cellar practices and generally made Chianti Classico DOCG a world-class appellation. Chianti Classico must contain a minimum of 75% Sangiovese. In the 2014 edition of its annual compendium of wine ratings, Gambero Rosso noted that Chianti Classico DOCG wines were noteworthy for their “significant return to a more defined style, true to tradition.”

This red grape is largely grown in central Italy. As the sole component or in a blend, it gives us Chianti, Brunello di Montalcino, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Morellino and Super Tuscans, among other favorites wines. The name is derived from the Latin for “blood of Jove.”