2021 Marchesi Mazzei Castello Di Fonterutoli Chianti Classico DOCG, Tuscany

Notes of raspberries and cherries with red licorice, dried orange peel and spices. Medium- to full-bodied with meaty structure. Tannins are wide and velvety with a juicy, red-fruited mid-palate. Fresh and crunchy at the end. Drink or hold.

93 points jamessuckling.com

Last summer, I visited the historic Castello di Fonterutoli owned by one of Tuscany’s leading noble families, the Marchesi Mazzei, in the village of Castellina in Chianti at the heart of the Chianti Classico appellation. I was able to achieve two important goals during my visit to taste wines that lasted one afternoon, plus a follow-up visit the next morning to see the winery and vineyards. On the first occasion, I tasted through a complete retrospective of Mazzei’s wine Siepi, an IGT Toscana blend of equal parts Merlot and Sangiovese (that usually sees 18 months in oak). We tasted 26 vintages, starting with the inaugural 1992 release and ending with the 2019 vintage that is on the market now. The 2009 and the 2014 vintages were not produced. On the second day, I visited the vineyards and smaller in-situ winery of Mazzei’s newest super high-end project called Ipsus from a site called Il Caggio. Ipsus is a pure expression of Sangiovese that has been curated down to the smallest detail. The Marchesi Mazzei today are Francesco, his brother Filippo and Filippo’s son Giovanni. The celebrated Tuscan winemaker Carlo Ferrini joined the team in 1991, and some of his most important innovations and achievements were made here at Castello di Fonterutoli. In 1985, a deep freeze killed off many olive trees in an area of land named Siepi. Instead of replacing the olive grove, the Mazzei family that owned the land and already had a storied winemaking tradition opted to plant grapevines instead. They were inspired by the work being done with the Merlot grape at the nearby Castello di Ama estate and decided to plant the French grape in this south/southwest-facing site at 220 to 310 meters above sea level. Located on a little plateau and surrounded by green forests, Siepi has a special soil composition with calcareous and marl schist mixed with clay. The Merlot covers 2.9 hectares and the Sangiovese is 3.1 hectares. The Merlot is harvested first at the end of August or beginning of September, and the Sangiovese comes off the vines about one month later. The wine is aged in oak for 18 months, with the Merlot going into French barrique and the Sangiovese resting in 500-liter casks. Recent vintages also see a four-month finishing period in cement tanks. The history of Siepi can be traced back six centuries, with written documents that name the site in 1461. Castello di Fonterutoli was founded in 1435 when the Mazzei family inherited the surrounding land. In fact, the Tuscan family enjoyed a long friendship with the American Thomas Jefferson. Today, the family makes a full range of Chianti Classico, Riserva and Gran Selezione wines, as well as a few IGT Toscana expressions. On my second visit the next morning, I visited the Il Caggio vineyard that is located just down the hill from Castello di Fonterutoli. The 150-hectare property was acquired in 2006 and is entirely planted to Sangiovese. Within the greater Il Caggio area is a special site that measures only 6.5 hectares. This is where Mazzei’s latest project, Ipsus, was born. Grapes are planted at a breezy 320 to 350 meters in elevation with southeast and southwest exposures. Clay schist is mixed with calcareous marl and alberese rock. Sangiovese clones were selected from the family’s experimental vineyard. Farming at Il Caggio is organic. Thanks to special planning, the Il Caggio vineyard is recorded as absorbing five times as much CO2 as it produces. In addition to the Il Caggio vineyards, a small winery was built to house the precious Ipsus production. The first vintage released was 2015. Ipsus sees spontaneous fermentations and 24 months in tonneaux (of which 70% to 80% is new), as well as a 15-hectoliter barrel. Experiments are being made to reduce the time in oak, and aging of the 2018 vintage was already shaved off by a few months. The wine also rests in cement and in the bottle before its release. There is a future plan to restore the little cluster of farmhouses that exists at Il Caggio for guest accommodation. After my visit to the Il Caggio vineyard and winery, I took myself out to lunch at the terrific Osteria di Fonterutoli (also owned by the Mazzei family) and sat under a shady tree. I highly recommend this spot for your next visit to Chianti Classico.

Monica Larner