Giacomo Mori 'Chianti' Sangiovese 2018

Vinous Media 92
"Mori's 2018 Chianti is absolutely delicious. Bright and punchy, with tons of Sangiovese character, the 2018 bristles with energy. Sweet red cherry, white pepper, mint and chalk all race out of the glass in a translucent, mid-weight Chianti Classico that hits all the right notes. Floral and orange zest accents perk up the finish nicely. The 2018 is a fabulous wine by any measure.
-- Antonio Galloni"

Tasting Notes
" Purple color, nose of black cherries and underbrush. Medium body, sweet and clean at first taste, should be opened after 2-3 years.

The Wine
Vinification: Stainless steel containers 40/60 hectolitres. Controlled temperature.
Ageing: 10/12 months in 20 hectolitre Slavonia and Allier oak barrels, tonneaux of 5 hectolitres, and barriques on the third pouring.
Refinement: In bottles for 3-6 months
Grounds: Sandy clay, sub-alkaline medium limestone.
Vines- 95 Sangiovese, 5 Canaiolo ~ Winery notes

The Estate
The "Azienda Agricola Mori" is an historical name of the Chianti Region, one of the first estates that started marketing wine in Europe and in the United States. The Mori family has owned this estate since the 18th century and have been growing grapes and selling wine to the local cooperative since the 1830s. However, it was not until the mid 1990s that Giacomo Mori renovated the vineyards and cellar and began estate bottling. No ambition here to produce great quantities, the vineyard will never exceed 10 hectares, but rather a powerful drive to create the finest possible expression of Chianti

The Mori family has owned this estate since the 18th century and have been growing grapes and selling wine to the local cooperative since the 1830s. However, it was not until the mid 1990s that Giacomo Mori renovated the vineyards and cellar and began estate bottling. Mori refurbished the family's spectacular cellar and re-equipped the ancient winery and cave. The cellar is dug into live tufo rock and is built on three different levels, in order to ensure that all the wine can be racked and transferred entirely by gravity feed. He chose only low-yielding rootstock and the finest clones of Chianti's indigenous Sangiovese and Canaiolo to resurrect his family's 10-hectare vineyard. He has spaced the vines tight, so as to force their roots to dig deep into the earth and yield maximum complexity. He prunes very short and employs only organic fertilization. No chemical sprays are used in the vineyards or the winery.

Mori now produces two Chiantis of extraordinary quality: The Chianti Normale and the Chianti Castelrotto. The regular Chianti is a blend of 95% Sangiovese and 5% Canaiolo aged in the traditional large oak casks while the "Castelrotto" Riserva is 85% Sangiovese and 15% Merlot aged in French-oak barriques. Vinification takes place in stainless-steel tanks. Both Chiantis are the very essence of Sangiovese, both elegant and concentrated at the same time.

In the Veronelli Guide, Daniel Thomases awarded the 2003 Castelrotto 91 points, writing that "the true flavors of Chianti...the wines of Giacomo Mori have them, above all in the exquisite wine that bears his name."

Vineyard Practices: Giacomo Mori is practicing organic. While copper and sulphur-based products are used, the winery never uses chemical fertilizers, insecticides, or herbicides. Leguminous plants (Vicia Faba) are sown on every other row between the vines. The plants are then mowed and tilled into the ground in order to provide green manure and natural Nitrogen. The soil is tilled between one vine and another on the row. Very low doses of SO2 are used to preserve the wines.

Farming Practice:Practicing Organic