~ The Courtyard leading to the Cellar at Piemaggio ~
Piemaggio may be the best kept secret from Castellina in Chianti.
Located just north west of town, Piemaggio dates back to the XIIth century. Owned and run by Larissa Karaban, the estate boasts some of the highest vineyards in the entire Chianti Classico appellation. In fact, the name Piemaggio descends from a contraction of Pieve (church) and Maggiore (high atop a hill).
~ The sloping vineyards of Piemaggio are some of the highest in the appellation ~
Piemaggio is small, artisan. The estate is comprised of only 12 hectares and Sangiovese is their focus. Their production consists of a Classico, a Riserva and a Single Vineyard Riserva. Quality is paramount and proprietor Karaban typically releases wine later than the DOCG laws permit. She wants the wines to be approachable and enjoyable upon release. As a result, the wines are often slower to the market; especially in the US. Generally, they lag about 2 vintages behind current trends.
Recently, I pulled the 2013 Piemaggio Chianti Classico Riserva from the cellar. I’d been holding it a little while, but then it slipped off my radar. Originally, I was planning to juxtapose it along with its little brother. At any rate, I’m glad I waited for two reasons. First, the wine is still available. And second, the cellaring seems to have been a positive influence.
This Riserva is absolutely dynamite! It is dark garnet in the glass; amazing color for an 11 year old Sangiovese. Immediately I was struck by the aromatics. Despite the age, they present freshness but there is also plenty of complexity here. Crushed wild berry sit center stage and are backed by aromas of sweet pipe tobacco, fennel and turned earth.
In the mouth, the wine is juicy and lively. The core of wild berry fruit is mouthwatering and leads to fennel, sweet herbs, tobacco and new leather. The tannic structure is there, but they are very soft and integrated well.
Round, ripe and medium to full bodied, this Riserva is versatile and paired very well with chicken cutlets and broccoli rabe with white beans. It could easily have stood up to a Fiorentina. It’s hard to ask for more than this in a Riserva. It’s what many Riserva used to be before Gran Selezione. 95 points. Find this wine.
~ Not only was this delicious, but it shows no signs of fading ~
As an aside, during the recently completed Rustic Tuscany Tour, one of our stops was at Querciavalle – a wonderful farm run by the Losi family. Like Piemaggio, they also release their wines later than most. We tasted the 2015 and 2016 Chianti Classico Riserva at the farm. The 2016 is about to be released and it’s excellent. We were supposed to taste the 2015 only, but they ran out and decided to open the 2016 as well. Straight from the bottle it was delicious. I bought and await the shipment. The Losi’s ship directly to the US for reasonable rates and their wines have limited importation, so if you’re interested let me know and I can make the connection. PS… their oil is some of the best on the Tour.
Salute!
