The 2019 Vecchie Terre di Montefili Chianti Classico is a beautiful expression of a true natural Sangiovese, crafted with precision following natural and organic practices. The fermentation is spontaneous, the sulfites level is lower than most, and the grapes are grown with organic practices. This led Montelifi to be considered one of Tuscany’s most exciting boutique estates. Located in the heart of Chianti Classico, high in the hills of Panzano, more specifically in the Conca D’Oro (Golden Besin), is the epicenter of the Chianti Classico appellation. The wine opens with a remarkable bouquet of dark cherries, wild strawberries, and cranberries, accented by notes of dried violets, wood, and a hint of herbs. On the palate, it is medium-bodied, really well balanced, it has gorgeous silky tannins and brilliant acidity that comes together in a wine that highlights the purity of the fruit. The vineyard sits at an altitude of 500 meters, the galestro and alberese soils lend the wines to be fresh, elegant, and depth, a true chianti taste. For the ones looking for a real taste of some of the best Sangiovese vineyards in Chianti, this is it. It is hard to find a 100% Sangiovese Chianti of this caliber.
2019 Vecchie Terre di Montefili Chianti Classico
Perched high above Panzano, in Greve in Chianti, Vecchie Terre di Montefili is a historic estate with vineyards at around 500 metres on rocky galestro and alberese. The altitude gives Sangiovese nervous acidity and long life. Montefili made one of the very first Super Tuscans, the 100% Sangiovese “Anfiteatro”, named after its natural amphitheatre vineyard, and the estate has been revitalised under new ownership while keeping its organic philosophy, with spontaneous fermentations and low sulfites.
Its Chianti Classico ignores the temptation to soften or fatten the wine: no Merlot, no heavy oak. The 2021 skips sweet cherry for crushed iron, wild rosemary and blood orange peel, with an electric line of acidity, a saline snap and traditionally gritty tannins, a tense, intellectual wine for charred meat. The 2019 is silkier, with dark cherry, wild strawberry, cranberry and dried violets, medium-bodied and balanced. Montefili wines are tense, mineral and cerebral, embodying the cool, forest-edged character of the high Chianti hills.