Skip to main content

Fattoria Felsina, Benchmark Sienna-styled Chianti Classico

Felsina was added to the Row 95 portfolio last week. Andrea Bonivento, the Estate's new GM, was in town to give an update on happenings there. While we might expect to see a few tweaks to the Farnetella line up, there really isn't anything "new" going on there. The wines remain the same old incredibly soulful, balanced "wines of place", that they have been since the 70's...a concept that, only now, the rest of the world seems to be catching on to. The website, however, is new so check it out, it is filled with wonderful words and images of the Estate. See below:

…From the Estate

"Fèlsina’s Sangiovese is the result of an extraordinary variety of climates, landscapes and terrains. A combination of variants – different soils and clones – that constitute a unified asset to hand down to future generations. For this reason, since 1983, together with Franco Bernabei, we have proceeded with rigorous selections that have allowed us to conserve an important patrimony of various Sangioveses grown - crus - at Fèlsina. The safeguarding and enhancement of Sangiovese is a constant in our work, giving sense to the word tradition. The oldest peasants have been able to give new expression to customary gestures and experience, and marry them with modern viticulture, transmitting the ensemble with authority to the younger generations. In this context, the cultural-agricultural choice to produce Sangiovese is not only ideological, but justified by knowledge gained through in-depth work experience and experimentation, in which the pairing of vine and terrain is a critical requirement. Like all good farmers, our main concern is to protect the soil’s natural fertility, which we strive to do by keeping an open mind to new techniques, avoiding excess, and working in an experimental environment that embraces biodynamic production through the most modern technologies and innovations available worldwide. The Rancia vineyard takes its name from the historic Rancia estate, once a Benedictine monastery. Located in Castelnuovo Berardenga at elevations ranging between 400 and 420 metres with a fine southwest-facing exposure, the vineyard covers 6.25 hectares. The more recent plantings utilized genetic material from massal selections gathered from the old Rancia vineyard. The soil is composed of the limestone-derived alberese classic to the Castelnuovo Berardenga area and of galestro marl in some areas. First vintage was 1983."

…From Burton Anderson

"Margaux of Chianti"

Numbers:

…From the Wine Advocate

The Wine Advocate Issue#191 Oct. 2010 94

The 2007 Chianti Classico Riserva Rancia bursts onto the palate in a big, brooding expression of Sangiovese from Castelnuovo Berardenga. Muscular and dense to the core, the 2007 powers all the way through to the long finish. Hints of smoke, tar, leather and scorched earth emerge over time, but only with great reluctance. In a vintage where so many wines are open, the Rancia comes across as quite stubborn and in need of at least five more years in bottle. That said, it is a standout, not to mention one of the greatest values in fine, age-worthy wine. In a second tasting the 2007 Rancia came across as decidedly more elegant and restrained in style, so it will be interesting to see where this ultimately settles within the context of recent vintages. Today I don’t think the 2007 has the elegance of the 2004 nor the power and ageworthiness of the 2006, but we will see. Anticipated maturity: 2015-2027. Felsina is a reference-point property for readers who want to discover the best Tuscany has to offer. Prices remain exceedingly fair considering the quality of what is in the bottle.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Something about Elena

 I first noticed it during an extensive tasting of rieslings from Terry Theise portfolio.  Most of the wines (grower champagnes included) were either organic or biodynamic and there was a similarity among all of them...vibrance, lift and a clear presence of high tones.  There was just something "lively" about them. One  of the most recent wines in the Row 95 portfolio to go Organic is the Campos de Risca.  Though from the "Campos" group, the wine is from a small family estate in Jumilla run by the third generation, Elena Pacheco.  Risca are large broken limestone rocks of which their vineyard is entirely comprised.  These suckers aren't the smooth rounded boulders of Chateauneuf, they are rough cut, jagged and virtually impossible to walk on.  Nothing else lives there,...weeds, bugs,  and frankly I don't know why anything would want to. Mourvedre, however, loves it...the heat, those stones, no competition from pesky weeds,  as Goldilocks...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Soils of St. Nicolas de Bourgueil

Whether they come from Chinon, Samur or Bourgueil, Cabernet Franc based reds from the Loire conjure Laphroaig-esque impressions to knowing wine drinkers.  They are often pungent, herbaceous, wildly complex wines with a small cult-like well-read fan-base.    Not in the mainstream for sure.    Just as Laphroaig is not indicative of all single malts, reds from the Loire region don't all share these same outsized traits. The wines from Xavier Amirault are just such an exception and it's not by accident that Vineyard Brands, an importer with deep roots in burgundy would be the kind of company to bring these wines into the United States. Land close to the banks of the Loire river is quite fertile and is reserved for cereals and pasture. Things begin to get interesting as one moves upwards from lower valley.    Lower parcels in the Clos de Quarterons, the Amirault family's estate, have deep (up to 25 feet) gravelly soils which drain well and where generous ra...
Post a Comment
Read more

Shaking Hands with the Beach

The beauty of good Verdicchio is in its steadfastness.  Alongside the dramatic flavors of garlic and basil often a wine built on a foundation of minerals will pair seamlessly.  The Velenosi from the Castelli di Jesi is just such a wine.  Terry Theise once said that drinking great Mosel riesling was like shaking hands with a mountain, if that's the case then drinking great Verdicchio is like shaking hands with the beach.  The sandy soils of Angela Velenosi's vineyards hallmark for the region, make for a wine with terrific structure.  In the hands winemaker Attilio Pagli the restrained white flower, almond and delicate fruit tones are revealed in perfect balance. With the myriad of intense Italian flavors set against the neutrality of pasta, great Verdicchio is one which provides the mouth-watering counterpoint...just about perfectly.  Of those, Velenosi is the real sleeper...restrained, subtly filigreed but, above all, steadfast.
Post a Comment
Read more