The Tasting Panel magazine

July 2016

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july 2016  /  the tasting panel  /  69 NEW RELEASES F ounded in the year 1051, Tuscany's Badia a Coltibuono (local dialect for "abbey of the good harvest") was originally a monastic settlement. Secularized in the early 19th century, the property is now in the hands of the Stucchi Prinetti family, who have turned it into not only one of Chianti Classico's most celebrated winer- ies but also a bustling center for hospitality, cuisine and culture. With strong ties to the States, the current generation of the family consists of Emanuela, who handles marketing, and her brothers, Paolo, who manages the estate's celebrated restaurant, and Roberto, a U.C. Davis–trained winemaker who oversees winemaking (with winemaker Maurizio Castelli) and is respon- sible for U.S. sales. Their mother is noted cookbook author and television cooking celebrity Lorenza de' Medici, who also created Coltibuono's well-known cooking school. Wine-growing at Coltibuono reaches back into the distant past, as Etruscan ruins recently excavated on the property revealed grape pips. Today, the state-of-the-art gravity- flow winery, first opened in 1997, makes it one of the most advanced wineries in the region. The charming Chianti Classico (SRP $20) and Chianti Classico Riserva ($35) offerings from Badia a Coltibuono are widely avail- able and highly regarded as, is its estate olive oil, a top choice of many gourmet kitchens. Coltibuono also offers a stately, structured, limited-release wine called Sangioveto (SRP $60), named for the local nickname for Sangiovese—a 100 percent modern-style Sangiovese with elegance, depth and power. Recently, Emanuela Stucchi Prinetti was in Los Angeles for the launch of Coltibuono's newest wine, where we joined her for an appropriately delicious meal at Osteria Mozza. Called Montebello (SRP $60), the new release is a blend of equal por- tions of nine indigenous Tuscan grapes (Mammolo, Ciliegiolo, Pugnitello, Colorino, Sanforte, Malvasia Nera, Canaiolo, Fogliatonda and Sangiovese) grown in Monti in Chianti, in the southwestern hills of the Chianti Classico area. The new wine carries a Toscana IGT appellation and is released in even more restricted quantities than Sangioveto. (An older sibling wine, Cultus Boni, is based on the same varieties but with the minimum 80 percent Sangiovese required to qualify as a Chianti Classico.) We were privileged to be among the first to taste Montebello, in its inaugural 2011 vintage, which shows fine-grained tannins on a velvety texture, with ripe, rich black fruit and notes of coffee, chocolate and minerals. Surprisingly modern in style, it still carried the earthy complexity of its many native Tuscan components. Drinkable now due to its extended bottle age, it could also be cellared for ten years or more. "We want Montebello to represent the essence of Monti in Chianti," says Emanuela, referring to the hills where Coltibuono has been cultivating its best grapes for centuries. The new wine is a fitting tribute to the Stucchi Prinetti family's devotion to the best Tuscan vineyards. Badia a Coltibuono is imported by Dalla Terra. From the Hills of Chianti Classico BADIA A COLTIBUONO RELEASES ITS NEW TUSCAN BLEND, MONTEBELLO by David Gadd F ounded in the year 1051, Tuscany's Badia a Coltibuono (local dialect for "abbey of the good harvest") was originally a monastic settlement. Secularized in the early 19th century, the property is now in the hands of the Stucchi Prinetti family, who have turned it into not only one of Chianti Classico's most celebrated winer ies but also a bustling center for hospitality, cuisine and culture. With strong ties to the States, the current generation of the family consists of Emanuela, who handles marketing, and her brothers, Paolo, who manages the estate's celebrated restaurant, and Roberto, a U.C. Davis–trained winemaker who oversees winemaking (with winemaker Maurizio Castelli) and is respon sible for U.S. sales. Their mother is noted cookbook author and television cooking Emanuela Stucchi Prinetti of Badia a Coltibuono. The impressive gravity-flow winery at Badia a Coltibuono. Montebello from Badia a Coltibuono is a blend of nine indigenous Tuscan grape varieties. PHOTO COURTESY OF COLTIBUONO POTO COURTESY OF COLTIBUONO PHOTO COURTESY OF COLTIBUONO

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