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If I had to
drink one grape for the rest of my life (thank God I don't have to!), it
would be Sangiovese in the form of Chianti. In my opinion, Chianti is the
perfect food wine because of its good acidity and many fruity flavors. It was
once described to me while sitting in the middle of a vineyard under a pergola
torta as "sunshine on the Tuscan pines."
I always think of Chianti in terms of food. A few years ago, while I was in
Firenze, a friend told me that there was a producer in Rufina who made
Chianti that aged very well and that he bottles going back to 1979 and 1982.
This producer was Grato Grati. Rufina is about a half hour from Firenze (that
is, a half hour the way the Italians drive, an hour and a half for everyone
else). When I arrived, we were immediately greeted very warmly, as if we were
old friends, and ushered into the dining room of the estate where there were
big platters of bistecca fiorentina, which comes from a special breed
of cows found in Toscana, the Chianina. Our hosts served the steak with green
sauce, which sparked a heated debate at the table and then in Firenze later:
that is, whether it is appropriate to serve steak with green sauce. But I
will leave that conundrum up to you. They served the 1979 and 1982 with the bistecca
and the combination was incredible. It was almost as if the wine became part
of the juice of the bistecca.
Afterward, we had a tasting of all their wines from 1979 to the current
vintage. The secret behind the longevity of his wines is that he holds the
wine in big oak barrels until he feels they are ready to be bottled. The
reason for this is that the larger barrels allow the wine to age and mature
more gracefully. This should put to rest, once and for all, the misconception
that Sangiovese cannot age. In fact, Sangiovese can age as well as Barolo or
Barbaresco, in my opinion.
A few years ago, I had a bottle of 1947 Chianti Classico gold label from
Ruffino, which was drinking wonderfully. All the experts with me that
evening, including myself, thought it was many, many years younger.
Fortunately, at next week's tasting, we will be tasting some of Grati's wines
this week, including the 1982.
We also will be tasting the 1999 riserva from Querciavalle, which is made
with the governo method, that is to say, 10% of the grapes are held
aside, dried, and vinified, and then added back to the wine. The 1947 Ruffino
was made with the governo method.
Another wine we will be tasting next week is the 1993 Badia a Coltibuono, an
estate which I've known for many years and have fond memories of drinking the
1978 Riserva at the restaurant on the property along with a pasta in a meat
sauce done in a frying pan. The combination was incredible.
Join us next week for this incredible tasting of ten Chiantis and see if you
don't agree that they're like "sunshine on the Tuscan pines."
- Charles Scicolone, Wine Director, I Trulli and Vino
Charles would love to hear from you. Please email your questions or comments
to charles@vinosite.com.
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