Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/688647
60 { THE SOMM JOURNAL } JUNE/JULY 2016 { wine heritage } EVEN THOUGH BENJAMIN FRANKLIN IS REPORTED TO have said, "Wine is constant proof that god loves us," Thomas Jefferson has to be considered the true "father" of American wine. Jefferson's love of wine, gained from extensive travels in Europe, blossomed at home on his Monticello estate where he planted dozens of vinifera varieties and made wine for decades. But Jefferson did not come to wine alone. He had help in the form of one Filippo Mazzei. Like Jefferson, history is no stranger to the Mazzei family. The Mazzei name is one of the most important in the history of Tuscan wine. Their estate was founded in 1435 and is the oldest family-owned property in Chianti Classico. The Mazzeis have also been deeply involved in political and cultural move - ments in the region as far back as the 14th century, begin- ning with Ser Lapo Mazzei (1350–1412), a winemaker from Carmignano who was also a notary of the city of Florence as well as proconsul of the art of judges and notaries. In fact, Ser Lapo Mazzei is considered the originator of the Chianti name in that he wrote and signed the first known document using the appellation name, dated December 16, 1398: "To be paid, on December 16 [1398], 3 florins, 26 soldi and 8 dinars, to Piero di Tino Riccio, for 6 barrels of Chianti wine . . . the above pay by letter of Ser Lapo Mazzei." Filippo (1730–1816) was yet another important figure in the Mazzei dynasty. Francesco Mazzei, the current Vice President and CEO of the estate, calls Filippo "a passionate grape grower, liberal thinker and a citizen of the world." It's worth noting that late 18th-century Tuscany was one of the most politically liberal places in Europe. Filippo's beliefs reflected exactly that. He was also a restless international traveler and in the late 1760s met Ben Franklin and John Adams in England. Impressed by both his politics and expertise in all things wine, Franklin and Adams introduced Mazzei to Jefferson. The two quickly became close friends, with Jefferson asking Filippo to help plant a vineyard on his beloved Monticello. In 1773 Mazzei traveled to Virginia with a group of workers and planted the region's first vineyard on Jefferson's estate. In his time spent at Monticello, Filippo also shared his political views with Jefferson. In 1774 Mazzei was quoted in the Virginia Gazette by Jefferson as saying, "All men are by nature equally free and independent. Such equality is necessary in order to create a free government. All men must be equal to each other in natural law." Mazzei's statements are eerily prescient of the text of the Declaration of Independence. No doubt he was an influence on Jefferson, who would later become the document's primary author. Filippo Mazzei may not exactly be a household name today but he has long been thought of as an American patriot. In 1980 a commemorative airmail stamp was issued to mark the 250th year after his birth and to celebrate him as a "Patriot Remembered." Recently the Mazzei family wanted to produce a special bottling to celebrate the life and ideas of Filippo as well, a wine that would reflect him as a man of the world with international ideals and yet pay homage to his—and the family's—Tuscan roots. Mind you, the Mazzei portfolio has some of the top wines in Tuscany, including their Super Tuscan Sangiovese-Merlot blend, Siepi, and their Chianti Classico Gran Selezione, Castello di Fonterutoli. The commemorative bottling is called Philip, a Cabernet Sauvignon produced from fruit sourced from the family's Belguardo Estate in the coastal hills of Maremma and the Castello di Fonterutoli estate in Chianti Classico. I asked Francesco Mazzei why Cabernet was chosen for the wine and A Patriot Remembered FILIPPO MAZZEI: A MAN AND WINE FOR ALL TIMES by Tim Gaiser, MS PHOTO COURTESY OF MAZZEI The Mazzei family tree is on display at Fonterutoli