“Vigneto Bellavista” Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Gaiole DOCG 2021

Castello di Ama | Tuscany
Castello di Ama s.r.l. s.a. | Loc. Ama | IT 53013 Gaiole in Chianti

09342521 · 0,75 l · 332,00 €/l · Price (DE) incl. VAT, excl. Shipping< 24 units available
Limitation of 2 articles per customer

Marco Pallanti, young and driven by a vision, let his gaze wander over the Bellavista Valley for the first time in 1978 and realised: This was where the benchmark for great Chianti Classico wines would be set. What he saw was more than just landscape – it was the promise of a terroir that was destined to make history. Bellavista, the "beautiful view", welcomes visitors to Castello di Ama like a grand gesture of nature. Here, on 22 hectares of south and south-west facing slopes, the vines are enthroned on a sun-drenched ridge between 427 and 515 metres above sea level. It is this exposed location, this special position high above the valley, that has always given the wine its exceptional concentration and complexity. The soil tells a story of millions of years: gravelly soil interspersed with clay and limestone, a rock called Galestro and Albarese, which creates the ideal conditions for Sangiovese here like nowhere else. There are 22 plots in total, terraced and carefully mapped, but in the best vintages it is plots 1 to 19 with Malvasia Nera and the Sangiovese plots 21 and 22 that form the heart of this Selezione.

2021 – a vintage that is already considered one of the most exceptional in the history of Chianti Classico. The spring rains nourished the foliage and gave the vines the moisture they needed for the warmer summer months. It was a year of balance between vigour and finesse, between the warmth that gave the grapes fullness and the coolness that preserved their elegance. These climatic conditions characterised a wine of unparalleled intensity.

The result is a wine of the darkest colour saturation, a colossus of elegant restraint. Black cherry and blackberry combine with graphite, sage, jagged rocks, lavender, mint and dried herbs to create an aromatic mosaic of breathtaking complexity. The palate reveals the full power of this exceptional vintage: compact and firm, supported by a structure that alternates between muscular power and graceful elegance. It is that "subtle interplay between power and grace" that has characterised Bellavista for over four decades. The tannins are silky firm, perfectly integrated into a texture of persistent richness. A final of spectacular length, infused with minerality and those dark, cool fruits that tell of the special location of this Gran Cru vineyard.

"When you smell this wine, you know it's a solid Bellavista, with blackcurrants, black cherries, blackberries, blood oranges and orange blossom on the nose. Medium to full-bodied with a tight and focused palate that offers such precision in fruit and tannins. It needs another five years to soften and open up." James Suckling

"The Castello di Ama 2021 Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Vigneto Bellavista shows a dark colour saturation and elegant, restrained aromas of dark cherries and blackberries. Vigneto Bellavista is one of the Gran Cru sites in this appellation, whose vines are planted on the high crest of a sun-drenched hill. This special location ultimately gives this wine ever greater concentration and complexity. The aromas of sweet fruit, ripe plums and spices are framed by a dark, slate-like minerality. The mouthfeel is compact and firm with a lovely sense of lingering richness." Wine Advocate

"The 2021 is indeed an intricate and detailed tapestry of all its elements. It speaks skilfully of cool heights, glowing exposures and an exceptionally warm vintage, but is youthfully restrained rather than exuberant. Traces of blood orange, blood, smoke and stone interweave with dark berries. The palate is agile in its power and density, with definition to its blackcurrant and dark plum richness. The tactile tannins are firmly anchored." Decanter

"The Chianti Classico Gran Selezione Vigneto Bellavista 2021 is a real stunner. Dense, powerful and forbidding, in the classic Bellavista style, the 2021 packs an immense punch. It is also a very potent wine. All the typical Bellavista characteristics are present, but they are almost masked by the sheer intensity of the fruit. Graphite, sage, crushed rock, lavender, mint and dried herbs play with a core of cool, dark fruit. The 2021 is a powerhouse - a beautiful, vibrant powerhouse. I can't wait to see how it ages." Vinous