I've Never Had A Chianti That Excited Me

[Mattstolz]

Personally, Pergole Torte I still would count as a profound chianti, since it basically is in everything but legal name. also, i think the question makes sense cuz it points a recc in a certain direction. I agree with trying Fontodis, or Rancia with age. Pergole Torte stands alone but these two are great as well in my book

But it still makes no sense drinking them young

meh… some people like young wines better than old ones. to each their own! I think they each can be fantastic

[Jeff_Rosenberg]

However, back to your original question…I’d search out a bottle of 2010 Casa Emma Chianti Classico Riserva. While not profound…it’s one of the best I’ve found.
[/quote]

This. Only two bottles remain of my case purchase. Will be purchasing a case of the 2015 when I find a source.

[Warren_Taranow]

Have you tried it with liver and some fava bean?

I ate His liver with some fava beans... - YouTube

In the novel, the pairing was Amarone.

[Thomas_Keim]

Michael - It might be a problem of expectations. I rarely expect a Chianti to be profound. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t hope for a lot of depth and complexity. At least in some of the wines. I also think that on the whole Tuscany struggles with value. One wine you might want to consider is the 2015 Castello dei Rampolla Chianti Classico. Retails for $28. I was at the bar the other night and was impressed with the wine as it changed and offered a ton of interesting aspects over an hour or so. The top wines of the region offer profound expressions of Sangiovese. But you have to buy select wines and give them time. Castellare I sodi would be one to consider.

Totally agree. You are just not going to get fruit jumping out of the glass with a young ‘Classico’ or ‘Riserva’, unless you purchase the spoofed up ones. One of the things I love about inexpensive Chianti is the easy drinkability while still retaining a nice acidity. Felsina produces a ‘Colle Senesi’ Chianti that sees very little oak and is just a charmer every year - never anything profound - but always over delivers -

[Jayson_Cohen]

Michael - It might be a problem of expectations. I rarely expect a Chianti to be profound. But that doesn’t mean that I don’t hope for a lot of depth and complexity. At least in some of the wines. I also think that on the whole Tuscany struggles with value. One wine you might want to consider is the 2015 Castello dei Rampolla Chianti Classico. Retails for $28. I was at the bar the other night and was impressed with the wine as it changed and offered a ton of interesting aspects over an hour or so. The top wines of the region offer profound expressions of Sangiovese. But you have to buy select wines and give them time. Castellare I sodi would be one to consider.

Totally agree. You are just not going to get fruit jumping out of the glass with a young ‘Classico’ or ‘Riserva’, unless you purchase the spoofed up ones.

Me too. This is why I recommended 1999 Vigna del Sorbo above. Great wine with strong fruit and fairly resolved.

This thread reminds me I should be thinking about opening my own older Chiantis. I have a bunch in the 18-23 year old range that I’ve been leaving alone to age.

[Jonathan_H]

Has anyone tasted the 2015 Montevertine Le Pergole Torte?

[Ian_Sutton]

Like others, I find plenty to like in Chianti (and some to dislike). I had a lucky introduction, taking a punt on a couple of mature lots at auction, and finding some gems already pre-matured.

Don’t expect Brunello (unless the new Gran selezione wines are heading that way) or Vino Nobile. For me Chianti tends to occupy a broad range between those two regional styles. The former richer, the latter more bony.

I’d rather a more even balance of VNdiM and Chianti in my cellar, but Chianti seems easier to get hold of

[Frank_Drew]

Stop drinking them young

Terrific advice, Marcus: In 2013 I had a bottle of Felsina’s 1988 CCR, and it was one of the most satisfying wines I’ve ever had, from anywhere.

[Claus_Jeppesen]

Personally, Pergole Torte I still would count as a profound chianti, since it basically is in everything but legal name. also, i think the question makes sense cuz it points a recc in a certain direction. I agree with trying Fontodis, or Rancia with age. Pergole Torte stands alone but these two are great as well in my book

But it still makes no sense drinking them young

meh… some people like young wines better than old ones. to each their own! I think they each can be fantastic

It was meant for the OP Your quote is not complete
The first reply and several other posts in this thread state the obvious answer for him

[Kelly_Flynn]

Felsina Rancia, with age. And red sauce. The 1995 is drinking beautifully now.

[Rob_M1]

The one Chianti that blew me away was a 1971 Castello Monsanto il Poggio. Among the WOTY for me in 2018 with some real competition, most of which are dramatically more expensive wines. Stored properly these seem to age really, really well, at least the Monsanto. Most Chianti producers at the time included white grapes in the wine (as was legally required I believe) while Monsanto did not, producing a more powerful wine.

[Richard_T_r_i_m_p_i]

I’ve had some Montevertine Pergole Torte and Castellare that I thought were gorgeous. Some Monsanto and Felsina examples too. I don’t typically buy Chianti for “excitement”. It pairs beautifully with lots of foods and the QPR is pretty outstanding IMHO. Clearly YMMV. Kind of surprised there’s no Bob Hughes input. Pretty sure he regularly buys cases for house wine.

RT

[paulbortin]

Brunello

[lleichtman]

I tend to agree with Michael on this one. I have never been a fan of Chianti but Brunello yes. Never found a Chianti that I would consider profound. Mostly “house” wines to me.

[Michael_Manix]

Chianti is my Friday night go to wine. After a long work week, I will often stop on the way home and get pizza/Italian for the family and then open up a Monsanto or Felsina CCR. Profound? Nope. Completely satisfying? Yup.

[Claus_Jeppesen]

Chianti is my Friday night go to wine. After a long work week, I will often stop on the way home and get pizza/Italian for the family and then open up a Monsanto or Felsina CCR. Profound? Nope. Completely satisfying? Yup.

As mentioned above a great Chianti (Montevertine included) can surely be as profound as any other great wine.
It only requires 20+ years

[Jeff_Vaughan]

My experience is similar to Rich’s and Michael’s. I can’t say I have found a Chianti to be profound (though I have never tried Montevertine), but it often puts a smile on my face, and we drink a lot of it. We enjoy Felsina, Fontodi, Monsanto, and Castell’in Villa among others.

[Ian_Sutton]

I tend to agree with Michael on this one. I have never been a fan of Chianti but Brunello yes. Never found a Chianti that I would consider profound. Mostly “house” wines to me.

Conversely I’ve had a very poor success rate with Brunello. Significantly more dull/poor bottles than enjoyable/exciting ones (at varying ages). Chianti and Vino Nobile have much higher success rates for me, and being cheaper just emphasises the difference. Different strokes and all that.

[Tim_Heaton]

Re: I’ve Never Had A Chianti That Excited Me

then you’ve never had a wine from Giacomo Mori, and/or San Giusto a Rentennano - or maybe you have, and the region is just not for you. In the case of the former, he’s outside the zona Classico.

[Pat_Burton]

When are folks going to realize, especially given the OP’s history and complete lack of response to all serious suggestions, that this whoie thread is a troll?