Sangiovese

Written by Master Sommelier Evan Goldstein 

Ask most consumers about Sangiovese (\ ˌsän-jō-ˈvā-zā), and they are left open-mouthed. But if you ask what they know about Chianti, that's a totally different story. Or is it? 

Sangiovese is the primary grape of Chianti, which is not a wine, as is commonly thought, but rather the best-known subregion in Italy's Tuscany region. Sangiovese's immediate family includes the equally well-regarded clones of Brunello, the Sangiovese selection of Brunello di Montalcino, and Prugnolo Gentile, the selection that constitutes Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Over the years, Tuscans have engaged in lots of winemaking experiments, closely following the wine laws when they believed in them and quietly “fixing” them when they didn't. Wine consumers have been the beneficiaries of this experimentation, which has led to dramatic improvements in the wines, none more surprising than with Sangiovese. We in California have parallel-tracked with the improvements in vineyards and at the winery to evolve the state-of-the-state of our current Sangiovese offerings.

Globally, long gone are the days when Sangiovese was simply a euphemism for tart and inexpensive Chianti in straw-covered fiasco bottles dangling off plastic grape arbors. The past 30-plus years have seen a revolution with this varietal, and today, the finest bottles of Sangiovese fetch sums rivaling those of the world's greatest red wines.