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The Chianti Chronicles: Part Tre

Written By: Dylan York on Wednesday, May 14, 2008

York reveals one of his favorite selections from Chianti Classico.

The region of Chianti Classico is located in the middle of the Chianti region between Florence and Siena and is the original vineyard site of the first wines of Chianti. It is surrounded by the seven other satellite regions of Colli Senesi, Colli Aretini, Rufina, Montalbano, Colli Fiorentini, Montespertoli and Colline Pisani. In 1996 the government passed regulations that upgraded the region's production methods and today it is perceived as the highest quality Chianti on the market. This is the style that, in a good vintage and with a good producer, can be set aside in the cellar and enjoyed for years to come. There are a large number of producers in this region, so picking the right one is very important if you going to get your money's worth.

For this article I picked out a great wine and prepared a nice dinner to compliment it. This is the wine that you want for that herb crusted veal chop I mentioned in the Parte Due. Unfortunately I was unable to score any veal but I came up with a good substitute. The wine I chose was a bottle of 2001 Marchese di Antonori Chianti Classico Riserva, which I decanted for forty-five minutes. I prepared a grilled flank crusted in fresh basil, rosemary, island thyme, garlic and sea salt, which I served over black truffle scented risotto with shitake mushrooms and parmesan. The dish was topped with a bit of sautéed Callaloo to add a Caribbean twist.

The wine opened up nicely after being decanted and had pronounced aromas of creamy oak and vanilla. I was a little taken by this at first because it came across very New World in style. Later after it continued to breathe, this dissipated and aromas of mushrooms, earth, clove and black cherry started to sneak out. The wine was brick red in the core and had hints of brown in the halo. On the palate the fruit was silky and rich with hints of pepper, tobacco, red raspberry and dark chocolate. The wine was balanced and the acidity was fresh and lively. In my opinion this wine could age well for another 5 years if kept properly. It was a perfect compliment to the dinner I prepared and I enjoyed the wine over a 3 hour period. Towards the end you could feel notes of tea leaf and spices and the last sip stayed on my palate for quite a long time. For the money, I felt like this wine was a steal. Even the price I paid in Grenada was good, $75 EC, which is $27.99 USD. I am definitely going back for a few more of these. There should be a few traces of this wine around the markets in the US so look around. Again, for the money and the fact that this wine has some age on it, it's a great buy. As always it's very important to make sure that you buy this wine from temperature controlled storage.

In my final installment of the Chianti Chronicles I will tell you about some great single vineyard wines from Chianti Classico that represent the two styles in today's market.

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