2018 Villa di Vetrice Chianti Riserva Rufina Tuscany

Winemaker Notes:  The Grati family are winegrowers for 5 generations, in the high hills of Chianti Rufina, just to the east of the fabled renaissance city of Firenza. Villa di Vetrice is the family’s 15th century Tuscan villa and is the ancient soul of the property. Our primary contact is the smart and good-natured Gualberto Grati, whose persona is steeped in the very special terroir of the Rufina, the local vitigni, or grape varietals, and local tradition. My first visit with Gualberto was deeply impressive. His passion for the terroir of the Rufina is obvious, as is his knowledge and teaching, which includes scientific pamphlets on the local conditions and grapes. I listened to him talk about how this special valley, composed of clay and galestro (calcareous marl), orients north and south, allowing the wind from the alps to blow a cooling nighttime breeze to keep acids high and aromatics fresh. The wines from the Rufina are known to be particularly long-lived exemplars of Sangiovese.