In the popular imagination, Chianti comes in a straw-wrapped bottle that’s served at an Italian restaurant where red checkered tablecloths accent the space and the red sauce flows freely. Far from luxury, it would be safe to say. But 10 years after the creation of a top-tier Chianti designation—Chianti Classico Gran Selezione—the region is really hitting its stride. These wines are considered so special that under the production code of the local consorzio they must be packaged in a Bordeaux-style bottle and may not be sold in the traditional straw-covered fiasco toscano.
Current releases vary by producer, but we recently tasted through selections from 2017 through 2021 and they have all been stellar. Tenuta Di Nozzole 2019 2017 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG is from the Folonari family’s vineyards in an area that visitors to Tuscany may already be familiar with, Greve in Chianti. Owner Giovanni Folonari explains that the UGA will be included on the label starting with the 2021 vintage.
Excerpt Taken From: Robb Report
Author: Mike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen
