Piemaggio Chianti Classico

We were clued into Piemaggio by a friend of ours who works closely with Montevertine and who deeply understands our aesthetic and approach, and from first sip these felt like a snug warm coat. Here was the magic of Sangiovese on full display, that tango of unapologetic acidity and savory fruit, shot through with a vein of bold earthiness and given form by a stony, cleansing minerality. If Piemaggio’s wines lack the aristocratic perfection of Montevertine’s, or the full-throttle wildness of Le Boncie’s, they more than compensate with delightful balance and a sheer lack of pretension. These truly could come from nowhere else, and they put the taster in direct communion with the inimitable soils of Chianti Classico.

Chianti Classico 2017

A blend of 90% Sangiovese with the remaining 10% split between Canaiolo, Ciliegiolo, and Colorino, Piemaggio’s Chianti Classico ferments spontaneously in stainless steel during a 3 ½ week maceration, and spends two years aging in a combination of concrete tanks and previously used wooden casks—mainly 25-hectoliter Slavonian oak, with some 500-liter French oak employed as well. Utterly textbook in Chianti character, it combines earth, bright fruit, and tangy acidity, with notable yet unforced concentration; it is a wine of balance and easy drinkability.