04
Mar
2016
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Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy
(February 15-16, 2016) ... 371 wines … 172+ producers … 7 vintages represented (2006 -2014) … 2 days … 1 enormous room for tasting – This is the Chianti Classico tasting 2016 and this is the pinnacle of the week – yes they start with it, but it’s the biggest tasting, the crown jewel, the reason we all gather.
“The 2016 edition of the Chianti Classico Collection marks the beginning of the 300th anniversary celebrations, commemorating 24th September 1716 when Grand Duke Cosimo III dei Medici issued the ordinance ‘On the Declaration of the boundaries of the four regions of Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano and Valdarno Superiore’ … a DOC appellation ahead of its time.” – Sergio Zingarelli, President Consorzio Vino Chianti Classico
I tasted close to 200 wines to get a sense of the vintage, the ageing potential and my overall satisfaction with the wines that are coming and the wines that have been – I stayed away from barrel samples (mostly) trying finished wines that dated all the way back to 2006.
Click here for the list of the wines that truly represented, to me, the best of the Chianti Classico wines I tasted broken down by classification: Classico, Classico Riserva and Gran Seleczione.
03
Mar
2016
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Category: On the Road with the Grape Guy
(February 14, 2016) ... What a way to spend Valentine’s Day, tasting Chianti by the truck load … if my counting is right, or the numbering on the paper in front of me is right (meaning they didn’t skip any), then I have 183 Chianti wines to try – but I doubt that can be done in the few hours I have – so let’s take a look at a sampling.
This is the tasting of the Chianti’s that are part of the non-Classico areas: Chianti; Colli Arentini; Colli Fiorentini; Colli Senesi; Colline Pisane; Montalbano; Montespertoli and Rufina … all Chianti, all DOCG – just not Classico.
As mentioned, with about 183 wines to try and super slow service (at one point I got up to get my own bottles and was chastised for doing so … twice) … I only ended up trying 42 of the wines (over a 3 hour period) – definitely not my usual pace; but it was enough of a sampling to get a feel for each region and the wines / styles they are producing … plus I was even able to cobble together a top three.
All Chiantis were tasted blind - to see the list of wines and a look at dinner, click here.
