Vicoregio 36 – Three Classic Italian Reds, Pt. 2 – Sangiovese
Castello di Fonteruloli in Chianti Classico embraces the Chianti Classico Gran Selezione category, producing not just one but three examples. They are all 100% Sangiovese, but each comes from a distinct terroir. One of those wines features here: Vicoregio 36.
Fonterutoli is a place where the ancient sits comfortably with the avant-garde. Ancient? The estate has been in continuous ownership by the Mazzei family since 1435. Sangiovese has likely been growing here since then. Furthermore, the earliest record of the word Chianti is in a wine document from 1398, written by a family ancestor, Ser Lapo Mazzei. He was a Florentine Notary and wine connoisseur.
Avant-garde? This estate has long been at the forefront of Tuscan winegrowing. In recent. years, examples include creating one of the greatest Super Tuscan wines (their world-famous Siepi, in 1992), researching their soils and microclimates, developing new clones and building a modern underground winery.
Sangiovese – so many expressions
Where to start with Sangiovese? It’s a grape variety deserving of its own book, rather than a few lines, and it would be a thick book at that. To sum up, it’s Italy’s most widely planted variety. Yet, in-depth studies have only recently been conducted. This grape variety is likely to have ancient origins, though its exact nature and even the derivation of its name are still contested. This is because Sangiovese is a variety that mutates and adapts to its surroundings, and there’s been time enough to do that in many different places. So there is no one, true Sangiovese; there are many. There are many synonyms for it, too!
What is certain is that Sangiovese is an early budder and a late ripener, which in itself is a reason why it does well in the warm microclimates of central Italy. Here, there is less incidence of spring frost, while long autumns encourage full ripening. In turn, that implies that Sangiovese is susceptible to vintage variation and to the attributes of a specific vineyard site, notably altitude.
These factors are good reasons for blending Sangiovese with other autochthonous grapes and, in more recent decades, also with international varieties, a process at which Sangiovese also excels. After all, the birth of Chianti Classico and the SuperTuscans originated in blends.
Sangiovese can, and frequently does, make world-class wines, and most would concur that it reaches its apogee in Tuscany. While Chianti Classico is just one of the DOCGs that would claim its crown, there’s no doubt that this appellation boasts a long history like no other.
Clones
Sangiovese has an enormous number of clones, with 111 of them officially registered in Italy. This is the highest amount of any registered variety, and even more remain unregistered! 1. Every one of those has different characteristics, and some, naturally enough, suit some terroirs better than others. Throw a wide range of rootstocks into the mix, and things can get very complicated! Vicoregio is a single-vineyard wine, previously experimental, which is why it comprises 36 different Sangiovese clones!
With so many great expressions of Sangiovese being made by the best estates in Chianti Classico (let alone elsewhere), one wine cannot possibly represent this grape variety in all its facets.
However, from every angle, Vicoregio 36 is something special. Hence, I’ve chosen it to represent the very essence of what Sangiovese can be, as Part 2 of my ongoing tribute to wine writer Burton Anderson 2. He identified Sangiovese as one of Italy’s three greatest red grape varieties, alongside Nebbiolo (covered in Part 1) and Aglianico (in a forthcoming Part 3). That’s as true today as it was in 1980. Wines such as Vicoregio 36 help show why that is.
Interlude: Chianti Classico Gran Selezione
Before moving on, let’s recap why Chianti Classico Gran Selezione was introduced, what it is now and what it will soon become.
Beginnings
The Chianti Classico laws sometimes seem to always be in a state of flux. However, the laws are designed to drive up wine quality and identity while preserving history and traditions. This is also in the context of a famous and vast DOCG covering 71,800 hectares of land, with over 7,000 hectares of vines and 480 Consorzio members.
Introducing changes gradually and with compromise has also been necessary to ensure that all producers in the DOCG participate. After all, the Black Rooster symbol is one of the wine’s most recognisable, prestigious and trusted trademarks. Moreover, it had once had a rulebook that could not accommodate the emerging SuperTuscan wines, so pushing them into the IGP category. Many still remain there, even though they would now qualify for DOCG.
Consequently, creating a new top-quality tier had long been seen as necessary to ensure that Chianti Classico continues to compete at the highest level on the world stage. Hence, Gran Selezione (GS) was introduced, albeit controversially, as the new top-tier quality segment. This was in 2014, applying retrospectively to the 2011 vintage. The most significant initial change was that the grapes used for GS had to be sourced from the winery’s own vineyards. In addition, the minimum maturation time increased from 24 to 30 months, and the minimum alcohol increased from 12.5% to 13%. These distanced the wines from the existing Annata and Riserva categories to some extent, though existing wines that were previously Riservas and some that were IGPs made the conversion.
Now
GS is now an established category, with some 160 wines, representing about 5% of production. In 2023, GS became subdivided into eight UGAs, whose names can be shown on the label. These Unità Geografiche Aggiuntive (“additional geographical units”) apply only to Gran Selezione wines, at least for now. These are not subzones (which implies that some places are “better” than others, which is not the case). Rather, they are different geographic areas based on well-known towns and villages that convey a general sense of where each wine originates within the existing Chianti Classico boundary.
For example, Castello di Fonterutoli’s three wines are from three different UGAs. Castello Fonterutoli is from Castellina UGA, Badiòla is from Radda UGA, and Vicoregio 36 is from Castelnuovo Berardenga UGA.
Coming soon
There will be three more UGAs from the 2027 vintage, bringing the total to eleven. However, the biggest change in GS in 2027 will be that international grapes will no longer be permitted in a Gran Selezione blend, restricting blends to using only autochthonous red varieties. Furthermore, the minimum amount of Sangiovese will rise from 80% to 90%.
Mazzei and Castello di Fonterutoli
Castello di Fonterutoli Winery
Castello di Fonterutoli is near the town of Castellina-in-Chianti, and has been in the ownership of the Mazzei family since 1435. After twenty-five family generations, the present-day estate covers some 850 hectares. Vineyards occupy 110 hectares, farmed organically. They are in 144 plots across the three UGAs of Castellina, Radda, and Castelnovo Berardenga. As is usual in Chianti Classico, the landscape is the quintessential Tuscan Arcadia.
There are nine Castello di Fonterutoli wines. All of them are red and highly regarded. There are four IGPs, including the now iconic Siepi. In Chianti Classico DOCG, there are the three Gran Selezione wines, plus Fonterutoli (Annata) and Ser Lapo (Riserva). A range of Olive oils and an entire wine resort (wine shop, tours, restaurant, bar, gardens, luxury apartments and hotel accommodation) completes the picture. Mazzei has also expanded their wine activities into other Italian regions, with the Belguardo estate in the Tuscan Maremma, and with Zisola at Noto in southeast Sicily.
This dynamic family doesn’t just make wine, as Agnese Mazzei is the architect who designed the three-level underground winery at Fonterutoli, which was opened in 2008. Here, the avant-garde meets the ancient once again, minimising the visual impact while ensuring state-of-the-art facilities. There’s gravity fed stainless steel technology. Natural temperature and humidity control in the vast cellars from the spring water that flows through the natural rock walls.
Vicoregio 36
Vicoregio 36 Labels
While Chianti Classico was traditionally always a blend of Sangiovese with differing amounts of other (many and various) grape varieties. However, ever since becoming a separate DOCG in 1996, 100% expressions of Sangiovese have been allowed, and Vicoregio 36 is one.
The first vintage was in 2008, then an IGP called Mix 36. The grapes used are the best selection of Sangiovese from the Vicoregio vineyard. This large 13 ha vineyard is at 330 – 350 metres in altitude, a plateau facing south/south-east, located in the Castelnuovo UGA. It’s the most southerly, lowest and the warmest of their holdings, yet also has the largest diurnal variation, due in part to funnelling the wind at night.
Vicoregio is solely planted to Sangiovese, the vines originally for experimental purposes, with 36 different clones, 18 of which were developed by Mazzei. It has Albarese soil, a mix of chalky limestone and clay. The vines were 19 years old in 2021, planted at a high density of 6,660 vines per hectare, trained to spur-cordon and guyot. Organically farmed, the yields are just 1.1Kg of grapes per vine.
In 2021, the winter was cold with little precipitation. Spring was initially cool, followed by a long, hot summer, with good diurnal variation. Hand harvesting of Sangiovese grapes took place between October 10th and 15th.
Vicoregio 36, Chianti Classico Gran Selezione DOCG, UGA Castelnuovo Berardenga, Toscana, Italy. 2021. 14.5%
Technical
Fermentation at 26-28℃ for 20 days in 500 litre French oak barrels, 50% new. Afterwards, maturation was for 18 months in those same barrels. After blending, there followed four months of refinement in concrete tanks. Bottled without filtering or fining, under FOR 51 natural cork in December 2023, with further ageing in the bottle until release in July 2024. 13,200 bottles made (so 20 barrels-worth) in this vintage year.
Tasting
The bottle was opened in October 2025, so the wine has benefited from another year in the bottle since release. This has helped it evolve, but decanting is still recommended for such a young wine, preferably for a couple of hours before serving.
A bright and surprisingly deep ruby colour. The nose has ripe and opulent aromas, with morello cherry initially to the fore, underpinned with some smoky notes, clove and coffee from wood ageing. As it opens, there are violets, roses and peony, and finally that loose tea/bergamot scent that should always be a hallmark of Sangiovese.
The palate offers balance, poise and elegance. There’s an impressive tension between the alcohol (offering an opulent background and fleshy texture) and the acidity, which brings mouthwatering precision. The alcohol offers power, but despite the ABV, it’s never intrusive. The tannins are now resolving, but there’s still the edginess of youth at this stage. Meanwhile, the fruit is in the dark cherry and berry spectrum, leavened by a little orange pith and fennel, before an exceptional length and a saline finish. A savoury, balsamic note appears if left to open in the glass for a few minutes, a sneak preview of future development.
This is a Chianti Classico that speaks of its origins in Castelnuovo Berardenga, at a lower altitude in a warmer and riper site – a complete expression. Already offering considerable complexity, and there’s more to come over the next few years for the patient, while longevity seems guaranteed for a couple of decades.
Food
This wine was paired according to the maxim of complex wine with simple food: Pappardelle pasta and Wild Boar ragù.
UK Availability
Petersham Cellar £73.00
And finally
Vicoregio 36 will develop during the years ahead, with overall longevity potentially exceeding two decades. It was chosen for this article due to those 36 clones, which is a unique and innovative approach to wine growing. After all, just how much more Sangiovese can you get than this?
Location
Castello di Fonterutoli.
Marchesi Mazzei S.P.A.
Via Ottone III di Sassonia n. 5. loc
53011, Castellina in Chianti (SI).
Toscana
Italy
What3words Location
Notes
- To see the list of 111 clones at ACOVIT, click here.
- Burton Anderson: Vino. The wines and winemakers of Italy (1980).