Anyone who thinks the greatest examples of Tuscan Sangiovese must (a) hail from Montalcino and (b) cost hundreds of dollars a bottle has not yet been acquainted with today’s wine. I’ll put it as plainly as I can: Monteraponi’s “Il Campitello,” a Chianti Classico Riserva from a single vineyard in the village of Radda, is one of the greatest, most cellar-worthy Tuscan reds on the market right now. Much like its celebrated neighbor across the valley, Montevertine, Monteraponi is there to remind everyone how exceptional the wines of Chianti Classico can be—and, unlike Montevertine, which long ago abandoned the use of the Chianti Classico DOCG designation on its labels, Monteraponi still proudly flies the flag.
As I’ve said before, I always feel compelled to litigate the case for Chianti wine every time a transcendent bottle like this one comes my way: I keep thinking, perhaps mistakenly, that people think of Chianti Classico as a place for tart, cheap red wine bottled in straw-covered flasks. If you do, we really need to squash that once and for all, and I couldn’t pick a better wine for the job. Powerful, taut, smoky, perfumed, persistent, complex…we all ran out of adjectives after tasting this ’16, which, it must be noted, is just getting started. I hope I get the chance to re-visit it at five, 10, even 20 years of age because my bet is that it will be spectacular. We have up to six bottles per person to share with you today—and by “you” I mean those who know a benchmark value when they see one!
In a relatively short period of time, Monteraponi proprietor Michele Braganti has cultivated a passionate fan base for his deeply traditional wines, which are crafted with assistance from enologist Maurizio Castelli, an acknowledged master of the Sangiovese variety. The estate spans more than 200 hectares, most of which is woodland on the outskirts of Radda in Chianti. Braganti has 12 hectares of vineyards and eight of olive groves, all now certified organic, and like many Tuscan wine properties, Monteraponi was at one time a Medieval borgo—a tiny village unto itself that once belonged to a marchese (marquis) who was the governor of Tuscany. Today the impeccably restored houses are used as holiday rentals, and Braganti’s aging cellar sits underneath a 12th-century tower that is the centerpiece of the property. Perched at about 500 meters, with its vineyards concentrated within a south-facing amphitheater, it is a stunningly beautiful place to make (and drink) wine. The soils are the classic, extremely rocky mix of galestro (a friable marl with limestone) and alberese (sandstone).
What Braganti strives for in his wines is finesse and aromatic uplift, and his model for what’s possible in this terroir is the legendary Montevertine estate—which is also in Radda, on a hilltop just across the valley. Montevertine, whose “Le Pergole Torte” is one of the great examples of Sangiovese’s “Burgundian” ambitions, took the “Chianti Classico” DOCG moniker off its labels long ago. But that doesn’t change the fact of their origins, and Braganti has hosted many joint tastings with Martino Manetti of Montevertine to hammer his point home. Theirs are wines focused almost exclusively on Sangiovese, with only small percentages of the traditional, local blending grapes—Canaiolo and Colorino—making up the remainder.
Today’s 2016 is from the schistous “Il Campitello” vineyard, which sits at about 420 meters and contains the estate’s oldest vines (40+ years). The wine is 90% Sangiovese, 7% Canaiolo, and 3% Colorino subjected to a lengthy maceration (45 days) in concrete vats during fermentation. It is then aged in large oak barrels for 26 months and is bottled without fining and filtration. At this moment, it’s a wine with a very taut, tensile structure—invitingly aromatic but needing air to loosen up and showcase its bright, brambly cherry fruit. Decant it at least an hour before serving at 60-65 degrees in Burgundy stems, and you’ll be treated to the full range of classic Sangiovese sensations: black cherry, raspberry, blood orange peel, rose petals, dried violets, bay leaf, humus, leather, and tobacco. It is medium-plus in body, with some sandy tannins that will resolve over time—starting in about five years, and, I’d say, continuing for the next 15-20, this wine is going to blow some minds. If you have a cellar, you must have space for this one, which has the nerve and “cut” to take on whatever slab of beef you throw at it. The attached recipe also calls for cavolo nero, a.k.a. Tuscan black kale, which feels right for such a resolutely Tuscan red wine. Cheers!
