Description
San Giusto A Rentannano are up there with Italy’s top growers – they are all about purity of sangiovese fruit, elegance (almost feminine for super Tuscan), beautiful aromatics, and superb freshness. They were certified organic in 2008 vintage.
Set in the far south of the Chianti Classico zone, San Giusto a Rentennano started out as a medieval Cistercian monastery and currently owns about 40 hectares of vineyards – a small landholding compared to some of big Tuscan names and a feature that means they produce small quantities of wine.
Accolades galore from the wine scribes like Parker, Tanzer, Wine Spectator etc… A couple of quotes …
“I can’t think of too many growers who would show the humility to say “I could have done better” when talking about one of his highly acclaimed wines from a few years ago. It is precisely that quiet drive to continue to improve which makes Luca Martini di Cigala and San Giusto a Rentennano one of Italy’s top producers.” — The Wine Advocate, June 2008
“San Giusto a Rentennano is one of Italy’s leading estates. Brothers Luca and Francesco Martini di Cigala are quiet and unassuming. They prefer to let the wines speak for themselves, which they do with great eloquence…From top to bottom, these remain some of the most reasonably priced wines in the world considering the pure quality of what goes into the bottle.” Antonio Galloni
Terrific fruit selection/depth of fruit … powerful strident wine but needs time. Again oak is not overdone (a lot of Riservas can be over oaked). Le Baroncole is made from 97% Sangiovese and 3% Canaiolo grapes. The initial stages of its production are the same as Chianti Classico but it is then aged in barriques for between 16 to 20 months. bottled unfiltered and held for a further six months prior to release. There are dark cherries. floral notes. spice. licorice and menthol and the tannins build impressively on the finish. Le Baroncole blends power. richness and freshness with outstanding balance. gaining complexity with time in the bottle.
94 points, Antonio Galloni, Vinous, Oct 2016 “The 2013 Chianti Classico Riserva Le Baroncole wraps around the palate with succulent red cherry, plum, spice, tobacco and leather. The new oak has come down in favor of larger barrels and casks, which allows the purity of the fruit to come through loud and clear. In the past, the Baroncole was often penalized by excessive new oak, but that is no longer the case today. Readers who haven’t tasted the Baroncole in a few years will be in for a real surprise. This is a superb effort. An unusually suave, silky Chianti Classico of pure finesse, the 2013 Baroncole is pure class. Rose petal and red berry notes punctuate the bright, expressive finish.”
RRP $115
