Chianti

Chianti is both a wine growing region and a style of wine (as is Bordeaux). The region is huge, stretching from Florence south to Siena in Italy. The style was formally established over a century ago by the illustrious Baron Ricasoli, sometime Prime Minister of Italy, at his castle of Brolio. As long ago as 1872, he distinguished between two forms of Chianti: a simple one for drinking young, and a more pretentious one intended for cellar aging. He allowed some of the then prevalent white grape, Malvasia, into the blend of early drinking Chianti with the red grapes of the time, Sangiovese and Canaiolo.

To make a long story short, Chianti has evolved over the years (remember those straw covered bottles?) to the point where there are now three levels of quality: Chianti, Chianti Classico, and Chainti Classico Riserva.

A wine labeled as simply Chianti can come from grapes grown anywhere in the Chianti region. It will generally be a simple but pleasant wine with lots of fruit flavors meant for early consumption. But there are lots of poor Chiantis, so one must be careful.

Chianti Classico comes from a smaller region that should produce higher quality results.

And finally, Chianti Classico Riserva is a producer's most serious wine, made from low-cropped, top-quality Sangiovese vines, aged in wood, with a life expectancy of ten years or more.

The opportunity for us is in simple Chianti. There is so much of it, prices are low, and gems can be found, especially as a summer wine.

One example is Caposaldo Chianti DOCG. It is a "brand name" owned by Kobrand Corporation. The grape blend is 75% Sangiovese, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon, 10% Merlot, and 5% Malvasia. So the style is a combination of the old (Sangiovese and Malvasia) and the new (Cabernet and Merlot). It has a nice cherry red color and well structured, intense flavors. I got it for $6.95 a bottle, a good value.

As a side note, the name comes from the Roman Empire's most famous race horse. Competing for an astounding 24 years and winning 1500 of over 4000 races, the horse was named Caposaldo by Emperor Nero.

If you can't find this one, experiment with some other Chiantis, but be sure it says DOCG (Denominazione Di Origine Controllata Garantita) on the label, which means that it is guaranteed to come from the Chianti region.