A new take on a past tradition, which culminated with the 1999 vintage, Querciabella Chianti Classico Riserva returns to the Querciabella range with limited bottlings in the best vintages. The new Riserva, a blend of exceptional lots of grapes from the communes of Greve, Radda and Gaiole, is one of the fruits of an unprecedented effort led by Querciabella to identify the finest sub-zones for the cultivation of Sangiovese across the region.

www.querciabella.com

Founded in 1974, Querciabella enjoys the acclaim of the world’s most discriminating critics and consumers for its exquisite range of biodynamic wines including Camartina, Batàr, Palafreno, Querciabella Chianti Classico and Mongrana. In its uncompromising pursuit of quality, sustainability and authenticity, Querciabella has continually honed its approach to biodynamic viticulture for over a decade. With vineyards located throughout Tuscany’s Chianti Classico and Maremma areas, Thanks to Sebastiano Cossia Castiglioni’s vision and leadership, Querciabella exemplifies the preservation of tradition through forward-thinking, albeit completely natural, winemaking. Sebastiano Cossia Castiglioni was born in 1966 in Milan. Under the tutelage of his father Giuseppe Castiglioni, Sebastiano was introduced at an early age to the world of fine wine. A lifelong passion for great winemaking matched by a strong commitment to the environmental movement inspired Sebastiano to convert Querciabella to organic viticulture in 1988 and to biodynamics in 2000. This uncompromising vision and pioneering spirit has confirmed Querciabella as a leader among the greatest wineries of the world.

• Sangiovese

  A black grape widely grown in Central Italy and the main component of Chianti and Vino Nobile di Montepulciano as well as being the sole permitted grape for the famed Brunello di Montalcino.
  It is a high yielding, late ripening grape that performs best on well-drained calcareous soils on south-facing hillsides. For years it was blighted by poor clonal selection and massive overcropping - however since the 1980s the quality of Sangiovese-based wines has rocketed upwards and they are now some of the most sought after in the world.
  
  It produces wines with pronounced tannins and acidity, though not always with great depth of colour, and its character can vary from farmyard/leather nuances through to essence of red cherries and plums. In the 1960s the advent of Super Tuscans saw bottlings of 100% Sangiovese wines, as well as the introduction of Sangiovese/Cabernet Sauvignon blends, the most famous being Tignanello.