Located in Castellina in Chianti, one of the 8 cities of Chianti Area, Tenute Piccini, or simply Piccini, is the very beginning of Piccini Family saga. The estate, developed from only 7 ha in 1882, is now main headquarter of Piccini Group, managing 400 ha of vineyards situated in the main wine areas of Tuscany,with a special focus on Chianti and Chianti Classico. a b c d e f g J. Robinson (ed), The Oxford Companion to Wine, third edition, pp. 162–163, Oxford University Press, 2006 ISBN 0-19-860990-6 Jancis Robinson notes that Chianti is sometimes called the " Bordeaux of Italy" but the structure of the wines is very different from any French wine. [15] The flexibility in the blending recipe for Chianti accounts for some of the variability in styles among Chiantis. Lighter-bodied styles will generally have a higher proportion of white grape varieties blended in, while Chiantis that have only red grape varieties will be fuller and richer. While only 15% of Cabernet Sauvignon is permitted in the blend, the nature of the grape variety can have a dominant personality in the Chianti blend and be a strong influence in the wine. [4] However the best quality comes from Chianti Classico, in the heart of the Chianti zone, which is no longer a subzone of the region at all but has been recognized on its own since 1996. The Classico region today is delimited by the confines of the original Chianti zone protected since the 1700s. DATA SHEET PICCINI EXCELLENCES COLLEZIONE ORO TOSCANA ROSSO IGT ROSSO Decanter Wwa - Medaglia d'Oro - 95 Points

An excellent example of Piccini teamwork is how the family agreed on orange for its Chianti label in 2002. “My father wanted a red label that would be in line with Chianti tradition and my brother pushed for a yellow label that would represent a new approach to Chianti,” says Martina: “My role was to get them to compromise and settle on orange.” The original area dictated by the edict of Cosimo III de' Medici would eventually be considered the heart of the modern "Chianti Classico" subregion. [9] As of 2006 [update], there were 7,140ha (17,640 acres) of vineyards in the Chianti Classico subregion. [6] The Chianti Classico subregion covers an area of approximate 260km 2 (100 square miles) between the city of Florence to the north and Siena to the south. The four communes of Castellina in Chianti, Gaiole in Chianti, Greve in Chianti and Radda in Chianti are located entirely within the boundaries of the Classico area with parts of Barberino Val d'Elsa, San Casciano in Val di Pesa and Tavarnelle Val di Pesa in the province of Florence as well as Castelnuovo Berardenga and Poggibonsi in the province of Siena included within the permitted boundaries of Chianti Classico. [9] Chianti Classico wines are characterised in their youth by their predominantly floral and cinnamon spicy bouquet. As the wine ages, aromas of tobacco and leather can emerge. Chiantis tend to have medium-high acidity and medium tannins. Basic level Chianti is often characterised by its juicy fruit notes of cherry, plum and raspberry and can range from simple quaffing wines to those approaching the level of Chianti Classico. Wine expert Tom Stevenson notes that these basic everyday-drinking Chiantis are at their peak drinking qualities often between three and five years after vintage, with premium examples having the potential to age for four to eight years. Well-made examples of Chianti Classico often have the potential to age and improve in the bottle for six to twenty years. [11] Chianti Superiore [ edit ]Angiolo's heir, Mario, took over in 1925 and safely steered the company through the difficult years of the Great Depression and the Second World War. Mario's greatest contribution was to bring Piccini to its first overseas clients. He exported Chianti “Il Preferito” (the preferred) to Germany and Austria two countries that remain very faithful to the Piccini brand. Nearly 80 percent of Piccini's wines are currently sold outside Italy today. Iwc 2018 - Silver Medal DATA SHEET PICCINI EXCELLENCES BRUNELLO DI MONTALCINO RISERVA DOCG Vintage 2018

Famous for its food-friendly, approachable red wines and their storied history, Chianti is perhaps the best-known wine region of Italy. This appellation within Tuscany has it all: sweeping views of rolling hills, endless vineyards, the warm Mediterranean sun, hearty cuisine and a rich artistic heritage. Chianti includes seven subzones: Chianti Colli Fiorentini, Rufina, Montalbano, Colli Senesi, Colline Pisane, Colli Aretini and Montespertoli, with area beyond whose wines can be labeled simply as Chianti. TRADITION SINCE 1882 Our tradition begins in 1882 with Angiolo Piccini, from a small family enterprise of only 7 ha. Guided only by passion for winemaking , from him the next generations inherited the most important rule in Piccini winemaking: “It is not how much you do, but how much passion you put in the doing.”Chianti [a] is an Italian red wine produced in the Chianti region of central Tuscany, principally from the Sangiovese grape. It was historically associated with a squat bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a fiasco ("flask"; pl.: fiaschi). However, the fiasco is now only used by a few makers of the wine; most Chianti is bottled in more standard-shaped wine bottles. In the latter nineteenth century, Baron Bettino Ricasoli (later Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Italy) helped establish Sangiovese as the blend's dominant grape variety, creating the blueprint for today's Chianti wines. [1] a b c T. Stevenson "The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia" pg 282-286 Dorling Kindersley 2005 ISBN 0-7566-1324-8 Nesto, Bill; Di Savino, Frances (2016). Chianti Classico: The Search for Tuscany's Noblest Wine. University of California Press.

The late 19th century saw a period of economic and political upheaval. First came oidium and then the phylloxera epidemic would take its toll on the vineyards of Chianti just as they had ravaged vineyards across the rest of Europe. The chaos and poverty following the Risorgimento heralded the beginning of the Italian diaspora that would take Italian vineyard workers and winemakers abroad as immigrants to new lands. [8] Those that stayed behind and replanted choose high-yielding varieties like Trebbiano and Sangiovese clones such as the Sangiovese di Romagna from the nearby Romagna region. Following the Second World War, the general trend in the world wine market for cheap, easy-drinking wine saw a brief boom for the region. With over-cropping and an emphasis on quantity over quality, the reputation of Chianti among consumers eventually plummeted. By the 1950s, Trebbiano (which is known for its neutral flavours) made up to 30% of many mass-market Chiantis. [10] By the late 20th century, Chianti was often associated with basic Chianti sold in a squat bottle enclosed in a straw basket, called a fiasco. However, during the same period, a group of ambitious producers began working outside the boundaries of DOC regulations to make what they believed would be a higher-quality wine. These wines eventually became known as the " Super Tuscans". [6] The Italian DOCG Chianti labelWhen Mario Piccini died in 1963, the company had grown to approximately 150 ha and was well established internationally. Pierangelo Piccini and his wife Marcella Sanmicheli (the current President of the Piccini Group) were next in line to bring dynamic change to the company. They enlarged the group’s portfolio of products and established a competitive price regime for value wines – a policy the company adheres to strongly today .