Our Chardonnay is the brainchild of Fabrizio Bianchi, who – in the mid-1970s – decided to plant these vines on the winery’s land outside of the Chianti Classico denomination. Inspired by the great white wines of Burgundy, it was initially fermented entirely in wooden tanks, but since 2000 the volume of oak-fermented grapes has been steadily decreasing – with 70% of the grapes now fermented in stainless steel tanks. There is a large stock of our Chardonnay in our cellar, illustrating this wine’s ability to stand up to the passage of time
Designation
I.G.T. Toscana Bianco
First year of production
1990
Grape varieties
100% Chardonnay
Training system
Guyot and spurred cordon
Vinification
Two thirds of the grapes are vinified in steel vats at controlled temperature, the remaining part in French oak "tonneaux" where it remains on the lees for about 6/7 months
Ageing
One year of bottle aging
Climate trend
The winter was quite mild in 2015, the temperature went below freezing for only a few days. Rainfall was higher than the average from the previous 10 years and this gave a good water reserve for the summer. Spring was moderate too with temperature around 2°C above average with regular rainfall. Summer was hot with low rainfall: the temperature in July was close to 38°C for several days, but no hydric stress occurred, thanks to the water reserve after the abundant rainfall in winter and spring and thanks to the peculiar soil of Monsanto (galestro). This optimal weather trend led to a vintage characterized by considerable quantity and very high quality. The phenolic ripening of Sangiovese was perfect in all the vineyards, Cabernet Sauvignon was picked as the last grape on October 14th.
The 2015 vintage has a great potential for ageing.
