A land, a Wine: Chianti Classico

Knowing that Chianti is one of the most famous Italian words in the world makes it immediately clear, even to someone not so knowledgeable about wine, how widespread the fame of the region is. But exactly where is it? What geographical area is defined by that name?

Well, Chianti is an area of about 70,000 hectares divided between the provinces of Florence and Siena. In a region like Tuscany, which draws so much of its vitality from its internal divisions and rivalries, the fact that Chianti belongs to two provinces – once great enemies – is today more a political-administrative fact than a reality. Chianti lives as an autonomous entity, strengthened by both of the Comunes that it belongs to.

In 1716 Granduke Cosimo III de’ Medici decreed a sort of denomination for the wine produced in the area, in this way codifying certain zones of the region that already at the time were distinguished for their wine offerings. The importance that the name Chianti has assumed with time is such that today it is used for many wines produced in a vast territory, from Pisa to Pistoia to Arezzo, which have no connection to the original zone-an astute political and commercial move in the 1930’s which produced much argument, discussion, and confusion.
Only recently, since 1996, has the official Chianti wine production area been established and its wine been baptised Chianti Classico DOCG, i.e. denominazione d’origine controllata e garantita.
In the last few years many English and German people and VIPs have made the area their home, successfully appreciating the beauty of the area and understanding its potential for tourism; they have chosen it for a place to live in close contact with nature not far from the magnificent treasures of art located in Siena and Florence.

The etymology of the name: the entry of the geographer Emanuele Repetti is not without its charm; he finds the source for the name of the region in the Latin word clangor, loud noise, from the sound made during the beating of the bush by the hunters of the area. In reality, however, the name Clanti is first found in a document of the XI century, in which is reported the donation in 790 of a farm to the monks of San Bartolomeo di Ripoli.
It is therefore possible that name comes from the age of the Etruscans, deriving from the name of an important family, Clante, found in some funerary inscriptions in the region. It was probably the Etruscans who began to cultivate wine here since, like all of Tuscany, it is ideal territory for vineyards.
The Romans followed this path and, after the fall of the Roman Empire and the barbarian’s lack of any sort of cultivation, the merit for the widespread success of the vines in the area must be given to the monks who lived in the abbeys of the region: Chianti, with its winding roads that made communication between cities difficult, was the ideal environment for meditation and prayer.

We need to wait many years, however, before the name Chianti becomes associated with a wine. The first evidence of this is found in a notary document from 1398, signed by Ser Lapo Mazzei, in which he authorizes the payemnt of six barrels of Chianti wine-white! But the color shouldn’t be too much of a surprise, if we remember that a zone like Montalcino, famous today for its hearty red Brunello, in the past was also famous for a white wine, Moscadello, sweet and light, and only in the 1800’s began producing the red Sangiovese grapes. This in fact is the grape that represents, also for Chianti Classico, the sign of distinction compared to other wines, for which no other place in the world succeeds in obtaining the results that this region does.
In these times of globalization, here we see the valorization of a particular region with its own special, unique characteristics determined by the environment.
The blending of different grapes to obtain a wine is also a typical aspect of the Chianti region, but what makes it so special here is the mixture of red and white grapes. This practice began in the last decades of the 19th century thanks to Baron Bettino Ricasoli, considered the father of the new Chianti wine; his culture and interest in agricultural problems was unique for a man of his day. And his mixture didn’t happen by chance: Bettino Ricasoli knew well that in this way the wine became slightly diluted and less suitable for aging, and was therefore light and drinkable, an ideal product for daily consumption.