Graduated price

Anyone who thinks of Chianti as a classic in a straw basket is not historically wrong – but is wrong when it comes to the reality of one of Italy's most diverse wine denominations. Today, Chianti DOCG covers a huge area in Tuscany that stretches from Florence to Siena and includes seven subzones: Colli Senesi, Colli Fiorentini, Rufina, Montalbano, Montespertoli, Colli Aretini – and the heart, Chianti Classico, which has long had its own DOCG. What remains is a denomination with great geographical breadth that reflects the Tuscan hinterland – and where, if you are serious about it, you can make fascinatingly honest wines, today even without Fiasco Classico.

Altesino has always been a pioneer in Montalcino. The house was the first to introduce cru wines and the first to introduce barrique ageing for IGT wines – and proved that Montalcino can do more than textbook Brunello. The Rosso di Altesino is the opposite of textbook: not a DOC, not a DOCG – a Toscana IGT that nevertheless shows what Altesino is all about. 80% Sangiovese, supplemented by Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot, harvested by hand on the eastern hills of Montalcino, fermented in stainless steel, matured for six to eight months.

The classic from the heart of Chianti Classico: Brolio combines the excellent drinkability of a young Chianti Classico with a complex, complete structure. The vineyards grow on the historic Castello di Brolio between 280 and 480 metres above sea level on five representative soil types – from sandstone to galestro and marine sediments. Intense ruby red colour. Fresh, floral nose with notes of chinotto, violets and mimosa, leading to fruity nuances of black cherries and sweet mint. Velvety and complex on the palate with great harmony, elegant structure and a long, mineral final. A textbook Chianti Classico from a historic terroir. SUPERIORE.DE

Curtain up for Ardalico: Named after a character from the epic novel Orlando Furioso, the new entry-level Chianti Classico from one of the most important wineries in the appellation impresses with an invigorating balance of fresh sour cherry and cherry flavours, ripe red berry fruit with fig notes, delicate smokiness, harmonious herbal and floral accents and a beautiful tannin core.

As early as 1928, Marchese Niccolò Antinori created a Chianti Classico that was to mature and improve – a wine for embassies, royalty and the world's great hotels. Almost a century later, Villa Antinori Riserva carries on this legacy, reinterpreted in the spectacular Antinori nel Chianti Classico winery: delicate, decisive, elegant. The grapes grow where Tuscan wine history is written – on the historic vineyards of Tenuta Tignanello and Badia a Passignano, right in the heart of Chianti Classico.

Every year, La Crena is one of the best and most refined Barbera wines that Piedmont produces. The vines in the Vigna del Nove parcel date back to the 1930s. This vintage will also need many years to develop its full expressiveness, but that's the way it is and we love this crazy development potential so much. La Crena is creamy and rich in the glass, dense, very concentrated with an abundance of layers of fruit that only develop fully with further years of ageing and make for an energetic, exciting wine. SUPERIORE.DE